Sci-Fi Romance Quarterly, Issue 7 by Sci-Fi Romance Quarterly

On "kick-ass" heroines... I was reading an SFR with a "kick-ass" heroine recently. The book is universally lauded. But something happened early on that ensured I wouldn't go on to finish it, much less read the rest in the series. The heroine was a highly-trained woman with substantial physical skill. And, after a scene with a companion, she finds herself running late for an appointment. So she goes to the equivalent of a present-day "taxi rank" and, disregarding everyone else, pushes her way to the front of the queue. Because she can. Because she knows that nobody else waiting in that line can stand up to her. I'm sorry, but that's not a sign of strength to me. On the contrary, I see it as a sign of weakness. To me, this supposed "kick ass" heroine is nothing but a bully. Let me pull back a little bit so you can understand my reasoning. I am a small, brown-skinned woman who's lived the majority of her life in white, Western environments. During this time, I have had to put up with plenty of verbal and physical abuse, both from strangers as well as people I had considered my friends. I'm sure that's one reason why I have a more-than-average dislike for people who use their position to exploit or belittle those around them. More generally, I've read that at least one in four women have faced abuse in their lives (sometimes, the number goes up to one in two, depending on the parameters), so the allure of the "kick-ass heroine" in SFR is completely understandable. As women, we relate to someone who won't tolerate what many of us have tolerated in our lives. The "kick-ass" heroine is the woman we'd like to be, a woman of sharp intellect and physical prowess. She is the woman we wish we could have been, in those circumstances when we swallowed our rage, our sorrow, our indignation, and bent our heads in submission. But, in this current crop of more-than-capable women kicking ass, the fact that we're celebrating characters who behave in a manner that we would normally consider reprehensible is alarming to me. My usual test for these kinds of situations is to switch around the sex of the protagonist. What would I think of a tall, well-built male who pushed his way to the front of the queue because he considered himself "better" than the "civilians" around him? Would I say, "Gosh, golly gee, I really respect that guy for doing that!"? On the contrary, I think "thug" would be the least of my epithets. Why, then, are we prepared to accept such behaviour from a female protagonist? If the novel had gone on to show some development of the characterâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;her reappraisal of former behaviour, or even some tragic condition that turned a child into a bully, a woman who grew a shell of iron because she'd been hurt before and didn't want to get hurt againâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;I think I would have continued reading. But there were no such indications and, from others who've read the series, I hear that this remains constant through the other books. So what are we to think? Is this elbowing people aside what a woman does because she's "kick ass"...or because she's pathetic? There's a fine line between strength and intimidation and I'm sure we've all seen it being crossed. Often, when that line is crossed, women are the victims. In such situations, what we crave is justice, and justifiably so. But justice and vengeance are two different things. And involving innocents in a show of strength, out of vicarious joy or to compensate for past slights, is unfair and shameful. In previous editorials, I have taken much of SF to task. I have written about "flat" characters, devoid of humanity and how, as a result, they're difficult to relate to. I don't really want to admit that I'm having misgivings about some SFR heroines as well, but I am. If I can legitimately criticise some male protagonists for being nothing more than lantern-jawed bio-robots, then I can legitimately criticise some female protagonists for trying to shove a Y chromosome next to the two Xs, just to show how "tough" they are. The

3 problem is, the use of physical brutality is an easy, ultimately untenable, way out of a much more complex problem. We want our female protagonists to winâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;oh yes, indeed, we do!â&#x20AC;&#x201D;but not just because sheer brute strength makes them bigger and badder than the opposition. Where is the fun in that? Remember Ripley from the Aliens movie? We didn't cheer her on when she got into that articulated heavy-lifting suit because someone stole her lime sherbet from the company fridge. That would have been a use of power to assuage some petty power drive. We cheered Ripley on when she used that suit to go toe-to-toe with that badass alien mother, in order to protect what she believed in. In the same way, we want our "kick-ass" heroines to win because they have right on their side, because they're able to outthink and outmanoeuvre their opposition, because they're committed to the path they have set for themselves, not just because they want to shove their way to the front of the taxi rank. We want them to win for the same reason we cheer for the underdog. Because, regardless of sex, to see the underdog winning means that that person has beaten the odds through skill, determination, will, stubbornness and intellect. When we see a big kid lay into a smaller one on the playground, we aren't impressed by his bigger stature or strength. We see it as it is: the strong preying on the weak. We should think the same way before blindly cheering every "kick-ass" heroine who comes our way.

Kaz Augustin

Classifieds Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Now Offers a New Release Newsletter: This newsletter will go out every two months, and will feature science fiction and fantasy new releases and backlist rereleases from SFWA members. Each newsletter will contain information on works of all lengths from the talented writers admitted to the premier professional organization for science fiction and fantasy. Anyone can sign up! This is a newsletter for readers, librarians and booksellers to help them find their next favorite story. To sign up for the newsletter, visit the SFWA web site [1]. External Links [1] http://www.sfwa.org/other-resources/for-readers/new-release-newsletter/

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CONTENTS Editorial........................................................................2 March releases............................................................ 5 April releases ..............................................................7 May releases ............................................................. 13 June releases .............................................................22 The Cosmic Lounge: On being an SFR prospector ................................................................. 26 Scopebox: Are alien abduction trope mash-ups on the rise? .............................................28 Reviews ......................................................................30 SF Mistressworks .................................................... 46 Opinion: Science fiction romance and the Hugo awards .............................................49 Focus: Waiting for the machines to fall asleep........................................................................... 51 Fiction: Old School Sensibilities.......................... 57 Sneak Peek: Star Cruise: Marooned .................. 62 Sneak Peek: Dark Horse ........................................81 Sneak Peek: Mavim................................................. 87 This issue's team...................................................... 94

5 Before we launch into the new releases for this quarter, we need to mention that we received an email recently: From: RS Subject: Suggestion Hi! Thanks for publishing SFRQ! I've especially enjoyed the short stories - a form of storytelling which in my opinion suits SFR as well as regular non-R SF. Could you consider having some kind of sign system for the New Releases indicating the percentage or relative balance of SF/romance. I tend to prefer more full-blown science fiction and would love to know beforehand if the book is more focused on the romance part with just a few spaceships here and there. And I'm sure there are readers who are disappointed if the focus is not 80%-90% on the romance. Not that it's an exact science to measure content this way, I understand it might be a bit difficult... RS, thanks very much for your email. We love our Fiction section and am glad to hear you like it too! And we agree that it's difficult to classify SFRs. In a way, it's a "how long is a piece of string?" question. Unfortunately, as much as we'd like to, the Editorial Team can't read every one of the New Releases, and would need to rely on the authors for information on the SF/Romance balance. So, authors, if you'd like to include tags or percentages or something when you submit your new release information, moving forward, we'll include it with the release info.

Releases - March We strive to include as many sci-fi romance releases as possible, but with current time constraints, we apologise in advance if your release was not included in our round-up.

UNKNOWN HORIZONS: Huntress of the Star Empire #6 (Athena Grayson, serial, $.99eb, indie) Torn from each other by lizard pirates and amorous avians, Micah and Treska must fight for their freedom. Micah’s not the last free psypath for nothing, and Treska’s been left for dead before—they’re no strangers to coming back from the brink. But for Treska, the brink is very interesting terrain, and leads her into a mystery with herself at the center. About The Huntress She always gets her man… Treska Sivekka is the best Vice Hunter in the entire Union of Civilized Worlds, but her latest bounty might put her right out of a job. She’s on the hunt for the last of the psypaths, whose

psionic gifts are thought to have caused devastating alien attacks on a dozen worlds. The last psypath, Micah Ariesis, is the only remaining chink in the armor of the Union. Acquiring her target starts Treska on a journey not back to the safety of the Civilized Worlds of the Union, but its wild edges, where she begins to question all she’s known—about the attacks, about psypaths, and about herself. As she unravels the shocking mystery of her own origins, she must question everything she believes until she finally hunts down the truth.

GRAND MASTER’S PAWN: Grand Master’s Trilogy #1 (Aurora Springer, novel, $3.99eb/$11.50pb, indie) A thousand years in the future, wars and portal failures disturb the fringes of the galaxy. On Terra, twenty-two year old Violet Hunter seems an ordinary student of the Space Academy, who dreams of exploring unknown planets. She applies to serve as the pawn of one of the twelve Grand Masters, although her hidden talent of empathy makes her ineligible. Violet has defied the prohibition against

6 psychics for half her life. Why should she stop now? Isolation is the penalty for a Grand Master’s great power because their touch is deadly to a normal person. The Grand Master with the griffin avatar selected the girl with the starshaped birthmark in spite of her father’s dire prophesy. He is suspicious about his disobedient pawn, yet he cannot deny the success of her missions to strange planets where she finds more than he expected. Violet seeks the truth about the mysterious Grand Masters. Who or what are they? Do they threaten or benefit civilization? While searching for answers, Violet does the unthinkable. She makes a bargain with her obnoxious Grand Master and challenges him to meet her face to face, risking her secret to discover his purpose. She plunges into an impossible love and a world of intrigues. Can she survive the vicious conflicts?

including never getting involved with the ragtag communities on his trade route. He doesn’t count on Mari and how involved he wants to get. Mari is a survivor. An attacking drifter gang has captured her entire village and she’s the only one who can stop them. If she’s going to die saving her people, least she can do is finally get her hands on Jared, the man she’s dreamed of since she first set eyes on him. When her entire life is upside down may not be the best time to get him in her bed, but she’s not taking chances. Mari knows Jared is her lucky break. She just has to convince him of that. Later. For now, their sizzling attraction is put on hold. Because, unless they free the village from the drifters, there is no future.

BADLANDS EDGE: New Guardsmen #3 (Ella Drake, short novel, $2.99eb, indie) Two decades after civilization’s fall, Nathan Covington makes his last trucking run into the lawless Midwest dust bowl. The rig he's refurbished has been his entire life, but he’s getting antsy. A change is coming.

RIVER ARROW: New Guardsmen #2 (Ella Drake, novella, $.99eb, indie)

Hawk, Scout, scary-ass-bitch. She goes by all those names. Her real one doesn't matter. The only thing that does is survival. Food. Shelter. Supplies. A trucker who doesn't want to give her what she wants? Well, he can be sacrificed. Even if he's the one thing she's wanted to steal more than any other.

Jared Covington is about to veer off course. He’s survived the end of known civilization by staying focused. His crew, his community, and his own life demand he take no chances. Working the Mississippi River carries enough risk, but it pays to avoid trouble where he can,

Use caution: story contains a heroine who knows how to throw a knife, a hero who dares to run dark in a big rig, a motorcycle gang who’ll do anything for fuel, and sweltering love in the badlands.

GRAND MASTER’S PAWN is a bundle of previously released installments.

Releases - April We strive to include as many sci-fi romance releases as possible, but with current time constraints, we apologise in advance if your release was not included in our round-up.

DEPTHS OF BLUE: On Deception’s Edge #1 (Lise MacTague, novel, $9.99eb/$16.95pb, Bella Books) For Torrin Ivanov, life is a bargaining table. Every planet is a new business opportunity. Legality is optional and supplying one side in a local civil war always adds up to profit. Jak Stowell is at war within a war. A woman hidden in the heart of a male-only army, her brother’s murder has left her desperate for vengeance. Her skill as a sniper gives her both the disguise she needs and paves the way ever closer to her real goal. She kills efficiently, without remorse. Putting down an off-world smuggler will be no different. A moment’s hesitation. A flicker of doubt. Two women on a collision course set off a chain reaction of intergalactic intrigue—and awaken a dangerous passion that could cost them their lives.

GIRL FROM ABOVE: The 1000 Revolution #1 (Pippa DaCosta, novella, $.99eb, indie) WARNING: Over 18+ only. Contains adult content, including sex, drug use, violence, and a plethora of curse words. Not for the easily offended. "My name is #1001, and I am not ready to die." I’d only just begun to live. When Captain Caleb Shepperd is released from prison, all he wants to do is keep his head down and earn a living smuggling illegal cargo through the nine systems. So when a synth stows away on his ship, and brings with her a crap-ton of problems, including guilt-ridden secrets he thought he’d escaped, he’d prefer to toss her out the airlock.

The problem is, she’s priceless tech, and he’s fresh out of credit. #1001 is not meant to exist. Created for a single purpose, she has one simple order: to kill. But not everything is as it seems. Buried deep inside, she remembers… Remembers when she was human. And she remembers what Shepperd did to her. She’s not ready to die, but she is ready to kill. From the bestselling author of the Veil Series comes an action packed story of love, redemption, and revenge. Pippa DaCosta captures the grit and realism of her urban fantasy stories and injects it—along with some down-and-dirty passion—into the sci-fi genre.

COLD HANDS, WARM HEART (Hollis Shiloh, novella, $2.99eb, Spare Words Press) Jason is self-conscious about his metal arm and uncomfortable with his sexuality. A big, quiet guy who intimidates a lot of people without even trying to, he works as a cook — and has a hopeless crush on his friend, Dr. Kingsley. Will Jason ever have a shot with his friend? Or does life have a different curveball to throw him?

FIREBIRD (Pelaam, novella, $3.50eb, Totally Bound) Cassian is the bait when his Monarch wants to trap a Firebird. Are Firebirds beasts, or will Cassian discover that real monsters exist closer to home? Palace scribe Cassian is stunned when he’s called before his ruler, Great Monarch Maurus, to be the bait for trapping a Firebird—a dangerous predator and a beast of legend that lives high in the mountains of his country’s border. As he climbs a mountain, Cassian is injured, but a Firebird rescues him. Cassian discovers that Firebirds are not animals. Instead, he uncovers Arturri, an intelligent being from another world, living as a castaway. But Cassian is helpless to prevent Arturri’s capture by Maurus’ dangerous and evil head of security, Phrixus. When the secret beneath the palace is revealed, Maurus is more monstrous than even Cassian ever imagined. Who can Cassian trust? Can he save not only Arturri, but also the other prisoners of Maurus? Reader Advisory: This book contains a scene of attempted rape and sexual abuse. Publisher's Note: This book was previously published elsewhere. It has been revised and re-edited for release with Totally Bound.

VIENNESE AGREEMENT: Beloved Bloody Time #2.1 (Tracy Cooper-Posey, novella, $2.99eb, indie) An unexpected lesson… When a video showing Brenden Christos feeding from a real, live human threatens to go public and embarrass the Chronometric Conservation Agency and all its vampire members, he knows he must find the source of the leak before Ryan and Nayara, the leaders of the Agency, tear him a new one, and before the video goes viral and sets back vampirehuman affairs by a few decades.

His investigation leads him into unforeseen territory. Harriet Winslow is the wife of industrialist Donald Winslow III, who owns the camera that took the damaging video. A hands-on corporate manager, she helps Brenden track down the leak. Harriet manages to distract Brenden in other interesting ways, but as a human, she has much to learn about the Blood. Brenden learns his own lessons as they close in on their quarry… WARNING: This vampire futuristic romance contains explicit and frank sex scenes and sexual language. Do not proceed beyond this point if hot love scenes offend you.No vampires were harmed in the making of this novel.

NAYA’S INVASION: Fallen Invasion #2 (Mia Mtns, novella, $1.49eb/$6.99pb, indie) #29831 a.k.a. Naya is a fierce commander of the quiet alien invasion. Her tasks were minimal. Remain invisible. Direct the invasion. Reach the quota of humans. See how the other humans react. Falling for a human wasn’t part of the plan. Will Naya be loyal to her heart or her tasks? Second story in the “Fallen Invasion” Series Stand Alone Story

1KRV5 (S. Zanne, novella, $2.50eb/$5.00pb, Inkstained Succubus Press) The world of genetic manipulation is highly regulated. Mikkel's beautiful creations are as illegal as they are magnificent, and none so miraculous as

9 Icarus, his perfect lover and companion. But love and good intent may not be enough to protect their little enclave. A new child may tip the scales and place Icarus and his master at risk.

SOMEWHERE OUT THERE: Anthology (Kara Coryell, T. Fox Dunham, Johnathan Ems, Sian Hart, Aeryn Jaden, Damon Norko, Angelia Sparrow and Gabriel Belthir, anthology, 54,000 words, 115 ebook pages, 186 paperback, $5.00eb/$15.00pb, Inkstained Succubus Press) At its best, science fiction presents us not just with a vision of the future, but with more understanding of ourselves and how to get to that future. It presents us with ways to think about relationships and people. And this time, it’s about the shapes of relationships. In these eight stories, we run the gamut. Whether a shipboard fantasy about a captain that turns into more or the new fiancé meeting the former spouse, people remain people, with loves and confusion. Sometimes the love lies very close to jealousy and hatred, as in “Bodies!” Sometimes, it grows out of an unpleasant necessity, such as “Similar Species” and “Expectations.” Occasionally, it is the mother of creativity and invention, in “Tether”or just food for a species that feeds on emotions, from “A Very Emotional Scene.” And sometimes, it can leave people wondering if it was real or not, as it does in “Wide Awake.” Love and sex are two very powerful drives and in these futures, they propel us far beyond our own world.

CODE NAME: GYPSY MOTH (Melodie Campbell, novella, $2.99eb, Imajin Books) It isn't easy being a female barkeep in the final frontier...especially when you’re also a spy! Nell Romana loves two things: the Blue Angel Bar, and Dalamar, a notorious modern-day knight for hire. Too bad he doesn't know she is actually an undercover agent. When Dalamar is called away on a routine job, Nell uncovers a rebel plot to overthrow the Federation. She has to act fast and alone. Then the worst happens. Her cover is blown, and more than their love is put to the test...

COSMIC FIRE: The Mars Academy #2 (S.E. Gilchrist, novella, $2.99eb, indie) Ensign Dana Lawson of Sector Seven fire team on the star ship, Columbus, has one goal: her own command. On an exploratory mission to Alpha Centauri A, she has the opportunity to earn her stripes, but instead faces a challenge that threatens to send her plans up in smoke. Rick Morgan, a guy with heartbreaker imprinted in his DNA, the warmest smile and the bluest eyes she’s ever seen, ignites a fire inside her heart. He is trouble, on every level…and he’s brought his dangerous past with him. Now a saboteur has Dana and Morgan in his sights. Together, they must learn his identity before he strikes again and kills them both…or destroys the ship and everyone on board.

HER ALIEN HERO: 1Night Stand (Jessica E. Subject, short story, $2.99eb, Decadent Publishing)

PRODIGAL STAR: Purgatory Field #2 (Nuah Belleton, novella, $0.99eb, indie)

Librarian by day, erotic romance author by night, Melinda Rose sets out for another exciting conference, this one in Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s capital city, Ottawa. But all her plans go up in smoke when the 1Night Stand she applies for is set to happen at the

A Dystopian Sci Fi Romance

same time. Cooper Tate heads to Ottawa to meet a friend. When he learns of her deception, he is ready to head back home and vows never to trust her again. That is, until he sees a picture of his stunning date. With the help of Madame Eve, can these two former neighbors become lovers? Or will extraterrestrial secrets rip away the hero Melinda has always dreamed of?

Back in the Citadel. Package delivered. Client calls it a 'stupendous victory'. To Te it's been nothing short of complete disaster. Outside is burning - an open war-zone, all because of her. The Citadel is worse. She has come to the attention of The Spire and that's never good. Te is a loose end and the Militia is the scalpel. No place safe, everything she has built is threatened. She has become someone's assignment. And Jin is dead. That should mean nothing to her - but it does.

Down in the fire and fume of battle something is SING A SONG OF THE STARS (Laurie A. stirring. Coming back, returning for her. And Te is fast Green, Rinelle Grey, Sandy James, C.E. running out of places to go. Kilgore, Shelley Munro, Greta van der Rol, Rachel Leigh Smith, Aurora Springer, THE VISTA: Wildblood #1 (S.A. Hoag, anthology, $.99eb, indie) novel, $4.99eb, indie) A collection of eight sci-fi romance novels and novellas. Spanning the universe, from futuristic Earth to unique alien worlds, these stories combine the realms of science fiction with heartfelt romance and tantalizing sizzle. Adventure, mystery, space exploration, technology, betrayal, and love, these eight stories sing the songs of the starsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;igniting the imagination, arousing the spirit, and uplifting the heart.

Team Three has a secret, one they think they've kept from all but a select few colleagues. They couldn't be more wrong. Allen, MacKenzie and Wade are Vista Security's top officers, part of the first generation post-World War 3. They've trained all their lives to survive and thrive in a cold, hostile world. Their secret - they believe they are genetically enhanced and are unquestionably connected psychically. Hidden away in an enclave in the Rocky

11 Mountains, they're also at the forefront of the movement to see what's left of the outside world. Not everyone in The Vista is as eager to venture forth. As they attempt to learn the truth, their mere presence makes them targets of a vicious renegade with the means to destroy everything they know. Facing exile or worse, Team Three has short time to figure out who is enemy, who is friend and how to save their home and themselves. The Vista: Book 1 of The Wildblood series takes place in the near-future where the Earth has been mostly emptied of human beings by a short and devastating world war. Venturing beyond the safety of their valley may be the best move Security has ever made; it's absolutely the most dangerous.

DEADLY LOVER (Charlee Allden, novel, $5.99eb, indie) In the future, love can get you killed. Security contractor Lily Rowan is clawing her way back to normalcy after a training mission gone horrifically wrong left her physically and emotionally broken. She’s returned to the city she grew up in, but not to hide from her nightmares, to face them. Living alongside the Ormney—genetically altered refugees who’ve settled in The Zone—is a daily reminder of the Ormney trainee who nearly took her life. Lily knew it would be tough, but she couldn’t have known coming home would drop her straight into a madman’s deadly game. Someone is drugging Ormney men and turning them into mindless killers, reenacting the attack Lily barely survived. To stop the killing spree and put her own demons behind her, Lily must overcome her fear and work with Jolaj, a refugee Law Keeper with dangerous secrets and hidden motives of his own. Jolaj long ago dedicated his life to his people. As a Searcher he slipped into the black nothing of interdimensional space day after day, risking everything

to find them a new home. As a Law Keeper he is once again tending to their future. But working with Lily could prove to be the most difficult task he’s ever faced. Despite the Council’s decree making relationships with the outsiders forbidden, he’s finding it hard to keep the courageous Lily at a distance. With the fragile peace between their people on the line, Lily and Jolaj must stop the horrific crimes before their growing attraction makes them the killer’s next targets. In the near future, the world is forever altered by the arrival of refugees from a parallel universe. The Ormney refugees fled their dying world with no possessions, no technology, just a natural ability to slip in and out of phase with the world around them. Few survived the harrowing journey and those who did are restricted to a zone within the mega-city called the JAX Metropolitan Area, spanning the North Florida/South Georgia coastline. With all that has changed, two things remain the same—serial killers still walk among us and murder is still as ugly and terrifying as ever.

MARCUS: Hell Squad #1 (Anna Hackett, novella, Free!eb, indie) In the aftermath of a deadly alien invasion, a band of survivors fights on... In a world gone to hell, Elle Milton—once the darling of the Sydney social scene—has carved a role for herself as the communications officer for the toughest commando team fighting for humanity's survival—Hell Squad. It's her chance to make a difference and make up for horrible past mistakes...despite the fact that its battlehardened commander never wanted her on his team. When Hell Squad is tasked with destroying a strategic alien facility, Elle knows they need her skills in the field. But first she must go head to

12 head with Marcus Steele and convince him she won't be a liability. Marcus Steele is a warrior through and through. He fights to protect the innocent and give the human race a chance to survive. And that includes the beautiful, gutsy Elle who twists him up inside with a single look. The last thing he wants is to take her into a warzone, but soon they are thrown together battling both the alien invaders and their overwhelming attraction. And Marcus will learn just how much he'll sacrifice to keep her safe. Note to readers: This post apocalyptic sci fi romance contains a lot of action (think invading aliens, explosions and gunfights), tough warriors (the sexy, battle-hardened soldiers of Hell Squad) and a steamy romance (lots of sexy times between a gutsy survivor and a tough, scarred warrior). So if you like it fast, and gritty, and sexy, this is for you! Includes preview of Book 2 of the Hell Squad, Cruz.

CRUZ: Hell Squad #2 (Anna Hackett, novella, $2.99eb, indie) Battle-hardened soldier Cruz Ramos is running on empty. As second-in-command of the deadliest commando squad fighting the invading aliens, he doesn't know why he's fighting anymore. He's seen too much destruction, devastation, and far too much death. Still, every day he goes out to protect those humans left, and every day the growing numbness threatens to take over.

Until a mysterious woman emerges from the ruins of destroyed Sydney and saves him from a pack of rampaging aliens. Santha Kade has one goal: revenge. The raptors who have devastated the Earth have taken everything from her: her team, her home, her beloved sister. Santhaâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;a former police officerâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;has spent a year alone in the ruined city, waging her own guerrilla war. Sure, she might get lonely sometimes, but she doesn't have room for anything but vengeance. Not even for a sexy soldier with liquid brown eyes, a bone-melting accent, and a face designed to drive a woman wild. But as Cruz and Santha join forces to rescue human hostages from the aliens, their explosive attraction is impossible to resist. Can these two warriors survive long enough to find something worth living for? Note to readers: This sci fi romance contains a lot of action (think invading aliens, explosions and gunfights), tough warriors (the sexy, battle-hardened soldiers of Hell Squad) and a steamy romance (lots of sexy times between a warrior woman and a sexy soldier). So if you like it fast, and gritty, and sexy, this is for you!

Releases - May We strive to include as many sci-fi romance releases as possible, but with current time constraints, we apologise in advance if your release was not included in our round-up.

I AM EBONY STRIKE (KS Augustin, novel, $3.99eb, Sandal Press) TAGS: SF Romance, Multicultural, Martial Arts, Fusion, Gestalt SF, Female Fighter, SF Adventure [60/40 - SF/R] A long time ago, a determined young woman escaped the despair of her homeworld, turning herself into one of the galaxy’s best martial artists, Ebony Strike. Decades later, the people of her homeworld have tracked her down. They need money and, in order to get that money, they need the old Ebony Strike back. But Ebony has moved on since that time. She is now Xin Dell, a respected government security trainer. And what her people are asking of her is insane: to participate in a corrupt official’s underground fight tournament…and win. Nothing less will do. To Ebony, it means training a body that’s out of shape, honing disused skills, spending her own time, effort and money, for a planet she’s all but forgotten. But, faced with the alternative—the death of thousands on her world—does she have a choice? Ebony needs to be focused and ruthless. She needs to win the tournament. Little does she know that she’ll end up losing her heart.

STARDUST DREAMS (S.B. Redstone, novel, $2.99eb/$12.99pb, Black Opal Books) Sage Saint Charles lived a wild and notorious life in Hollywood before she descended into obscurity as a social recluse. Sage has regrets, more regrets than a person should have. When her drowsy eyes open, in hospice care, an unfamiliar old man is standing at her

bedside. Lance Forrester is a dreamer. After a celebrated career as an astronaut and engineer, he and a friend built a secret spacecraft to seek their destinies in the stars. But, his friend died. Now that Lance has terminal cancer, he hopes to convince Sage who he hasn’t seen since high school, to join him on his quest to reach an advanced alien civilization and seek immortality. Stardust Dreams is an epic love story. Unfortunately, true life is not a Hollywood movie. Can these two intrepid octogenarians overcome the emotional scars of their pasts and achieve true happiness, or are they doomed to suffer for their mistakes, no matter how far from Earth they go?

MINDER RISING: Central Galactic Concordance #2 (Carol Van Natta, novel, $3.99eb, Chavanch Press, LLC) millennium into the future, all children are tested for minder talents, and the best are recruited for the Citizen Protection Service. Agent Lièrén Sóng is recovering from a nearfatal crash. He should want nothing more than to get back to using his talents to interrogate criminals for his covert CPS field unit, but being sidelined gains new appeal when he makes friends with a woman and her son. Imara Sesay, road crew chief and part-time bartender, breaks her

14 ironclad rule never to get close to customers when she asks Lièrén to teach her son how to control his growing minder talents. Unexpected deaths in his field unit make Lièrén suspect he isn’t a lucky survivor, he’s a loose end. He should pull away from Imara and Derrit to keep them safe, but when the local CPS Testing Center is entirely too interested in Derrit’s talents, Lièrén must make an impossible choice. Can he stay alive long enough to save Imara and her prodigy son?

NATURAL ATTRACTION (Catherine Haustein, NOVEL, $2.99eb/$13.99pb, Penner Publishing) To get ahead she’ll have to become a man—and a man, she always thought, never lets love get in the way… Clementine dreams of being a naturalist—a career that leaves no time for romance. To sneak on an adventurous prospecting expedition, Clementine will have to convince everyone she’s a man. A mysterious tonic offers her just that disguise. But “Calvin,” as she calls herself now, had no idea what she was giving up. When Wesley, the expedition’s gentle preacher, catches her eye, she can’t get him out of her head; not his lush lips, wide brown eyes…or broad chest. Dare she reveal her secret to him? Can she keep her career if she does? Among run-ins with cowboys, natural disasters, and traveling shows, Wesley’s most fascinating adventure is meeting Calvin. Though Wesley’s betrothed to another, the cute, clever naturalist threatens to make him fall into temptation…

THRILL-KINKY: Chronicles of the Malcolm #1 (Teresa Noelle-Roberts, novel, $4.50eb, Samhain Publishing) Sexual freefall is like a game of chicken, except the first one to let go wins. Humans may have expanded to the stars, but they still

have the annoying need to work for a living. Which is why Rita, crew member of the space freighter Malcolm, is stuck collecting recyclable slag rather than attending her favorite festival celebrating love and sexuality. Things go from boring to interesting when she discovers a badly injured man who’s been thrown into a recycling bin to die. The catch, he’s gorgeous, winged, and naked. Drax Jalricki, reformed (mostly) art thief and reluctant covert operative, is on an undercover mission to protect three planets when someone in his own government brands him a traitor. By virtue of association, Rita and her crew are going down with him. From their first, hide-in-plain-sight quickie, the erotic spark between Rita and Drax is fueled by danger and adrenaline. But their growing suspicion that there’s more to their connection than lust may not matter if they don’t live through the night. Warning: Hero and heroine who straddle the line of criminal behavior—and definitely violate public indecency statutes. Exhibitionist, dangerous sex. Dark, sordid pasts. Wild risk-taking. Giggly cat-girl sidekick who’s not just another pretty…tail. And the greatest risk of all: true love.

THE TIME SLIP GIRL (Elizabeth Andre, novel, $3.99eb, Tulabella Ruby Press) What if the woman you loved was more than a century away? Dara, a computer programmer from Chicago, is visiting London when she opens a door in an Edwardian house and

15 slips into Edwardian England. Agnes, a beautiful London shop girl, takes in the bewildered 21st century American lesbian, but, as Dara begins to accept that she is stuck in 1908, she also begins to accept that she has feelings for Agnes that go beyond gratitude. And the longer Dara stays, the harder Agnes finds it to hide her growing love for the accidental time traveller from the future. Will they overcome grief and prejudice to acknowledge their true feelings for one another? Or will Dara be snatched back to the 21st century before they can express their love?

STEALING MERCURY: Arena Dogs #1 (Charlee Allden, novel, $3.99eb, indie) Born a slave, Mercury is an Arena Dog, genetically engineered to fight and die in the Arena for the entertainment of others. Trained as a gladiator from boyhood, he’s gathered and led one of the most successful teams in arena history and earned a reputation for fighting against his animal instincts to strategize as well as any free man. In their violent world, where men must form alliances and share what little bounty they have to survive, his only goal has been to keep his men alive. But two of his men are dead and he, Diablo and Carnage are condemned to be hunted down like animals in an inhuman sport designed to end in their deaths. Worse, their demise will leave Carn’s mate, a woman Mercury has sworn to protect, alone and vulnerable. And then there is Samantha—a courageous human he has no right to claim. But she is his. He feels it deep in his soul and with an ache in his body he can’t deny. Diablo knows he isn’t far from becoming the devil he was named. But he’s still levelheaded enough to be skeptical of the little female that has Mercury enthralled. Lo has personally experienced of the treachery of human women. Could this one really be different? Samantha Devlin is a down-on-her-luck indie-freight

pilot, working in the belly of a corporate hauler until she can earn the credits for her own ship. When an old friend hires her as an emergency replacement to pilot a cargo carrier for the Roma Company, she’s shocked to learn her cargo is three, living, breathing, and dangerously sexy Arena Dogs. When Samantha learns she’s taking the men to their deaths, she must decide is she if willing to risking everything for a man whose customs require that he share her with one of his men and demands he return to Roma to protect another woman. Her heart tells her Mercury is worth any cost, but her head sees nothing ahead but disaster. Caution: features two scorching hot heroes and one impossibly impulsive woman. Their story may just make you want to steal an Arena Dog or two of your own.

SET TO RIGHTS: Huntress of the Star Empire #12 (Athena Grayson, serial, $.99eb, indie) Can Treska overcome her phobia enough to allow Micah into her mind? Will Micah’s talents be enough to cut through the lies that make up her identity before her sanity splinters? As the false constructs around Treska come crumbling down, the Union itself begins to fracture, torn apart by warring desires for freedom and security. How far must Micah go to set the star system to rights? About The Huntress She always gets her man… Treska Sivekka is the best Vice Hunter in the entire Union of Civilized Worlds, but her latest bounty might put her right out of a job. She’s on the hunt for the last of the psypaths, whose psionic gifts are thought to have caused devastating alien attacks on a dozen worlds. The last psypath, Micah Ariesis, is the only remaining chink in the armor of the Union. Acquiring her target starts Treska on a journey not back to the safety of the Civilized Worlds of the Union, but its wild edges, where she begins to question all

16 she’s known—about the attacks, about psypaths, and about herself. As she unravels the shocking mystery of her own origins, she must question everything she believes until she finally hunts down the truth.

CRUSADER: Battle Born #1 (Cyndi Friberg, novel, $3.99eb, Anything-butOrdinary) Ashley comes home after a long day and finds a spaceman searching her apartment. Before she can call for help, or run like hell, the intruder stabs her and leaves her for dead. Willing to risk everything for the chance at a better life, Bandar, a battle born soldier, travels to Earth. His superiors believe a geneticist name Daniel Kane holds the key to freedom for Bandar’s people, but first they have to find him. Bandar’s search leads to Daniel’s daughter, Ashley, just in time to save her life. Bandar is so captivated by the fragile human that his need to protect and possess her threatens his mission. Ashley awakens miraculously healed and filled with questions. Bandar is gorgeous and heroic, but she knows he’s full of crap. This isn’t the first time she’s run across aliens and now she knows it won’t be the last. She agrees to help him unravel the secrets surrounding her father’s work. Ashley has always believed her father was murdered and now she has a chance to learn the truth. But it’s hard to trust Bandar when the brush of his fingers makes her entire body tingle. Their volatile attraction could fulfill her wildest fantasies or open the door for planetary invasion. Note to Readers: This book contains detailed descriptions of sizzling passion only suitable for mature readers. From Cyndi: Battle Born is a spinoff of my Shadow Assassins series. However, it’s not necessary to have

read the earlier books to enjoy these new stories. All of my books are cross-genre romances. They blend elements of science-fiction, fantasy, and paranormal romance. The Battle Born books will lean a bit more toward sci-fi, but there will still be plenty of steamy romance. Enjoy!

THE CAPTAIN'S PET: Alien Slave Masters #1 (Samantha Cayto, short novel, Totally Bound) When a distant planet’s ownership is in dispute, conquering aliens turn defiant human males into pampered sex slaves. In a not-too-distant future, a lopsided war has led to aliens invading and occupying an Earth settlement. Wid is a young colonist who has been caught harassing the aliens. He and his friends are rounded up and sent to an alien warship patrolling the disputed space. His fate is to serve as a sex slave for the ship’s imposing captain. Wid, at first, fights against his enslavement, but soon learns that not only does he stand no chance against the much larger and stronger captain, he isn’t sure he even wants to. Like all Travian males, Kell is bound by duty to defend his people. Having risen to the rank of captain, he nevertheless chafes against the boring and endless patrol of the space invaded by the humans. His misses his family and constantly guards against his scheming first officer. He sees his reward of a human sex slave as more of a nuisance. Yet the pretty, fair-haired human’s exotic allure is hard to resist. He finds far more pleasure in the use of his pet than he would like. Kept naked and leashed, Wid’s days are filled with boredom, while his nights wrapped in Kell’s arms turn from fear into pleasure. Even as the humans plot their escape, Wid and Kell form a bond and their growing affection cannot be ignored. When tensions boil over among the aliens, Wid and his friends may

17 be Kell and his crew’s only chance for survival. Reader Advisory: This book contains sex scenes of both non-consensual and dubious consent, as well as scenes of violence, abuse and torture.

ALIEN CONTACT FOR KID SISTERS: Alien Contact For Idiots #2 ( Ed "Mr. Valentine" Hoornaert, novel, $3.99eb, indie) Fleeing rebels, the queen’s sister finds a hero to save her. Or is he kidnapping her? Marianne is sick and tired of being just the kid sister of the famous queen of Kwadra Island. Although she daydreams about being a warrior, when rebels bomb the royal ball she’s shunted to one of the many tunnels that honeycomb Kwadra, where she awaits a captain of the valiant Royal Guardians. Quinn, a scam artist fleeing the police, dons the uniform of a Royal Guardian killed by a tunnel collapse. When Marianne mistakes him for her bodyguard, Quinn can’t decide whether to save the feisty maiden, fall in love with her—or kidnap her. With bloodthirsty rebels pursuing them and a treasure map in his pocket, what will he choose? A worthy sequel to Alien Contact for Idiots, this book stands on its own as a grand adventure of science fiction romance in the spirit of Romancing the Stone.

DASH: Recast #4 (Yolanda Sfetsos, novella, $3.15eb, Samhain Publishing) Taylor may be the Clash Arena’s most dominant—and only—female gladiator, but today she just can’t catch a break. After winning yet another brutal fight, with the arena inexplicably falling down around her ears, she jumps at the chance to escape the prison of her subterranean pit. Instead, she finds herself knocked unconscious more times than she can count, and pursued over the edge of a sea cliff by an AI enforcer she can’t shake off her

heels. Walsh has been living a double life, masquerading as a tyrant’s enforcer while hiding his true agenda. When the despicable arena falls, there’s only one thing on his mind—saving the savage blonde who doesn’t trust him as far as she can throw him. Which is a considerable distance. Once he convinces her he’s not out to kill her but help her survive, they form an uneasy alliance. But Taylor senses he’s keeping a secret, not just from her, but about her. And the truth will show them exactly what it is to be human. Product Warnings This book contains some girl-on-girl action, a kick-ass gladiator who takes no crap, an AI who puts it all on the line, a band of misfits who aren’t as merry as they seem, cute tadpoles with sharp teeth, and gripyou-by-the-hair kisses. Strap in, interstellar turbulence is a bitch.

SONG OF THE NAVIGATOR (Astrid Amara, novel, $3.85eb/$11.19pb, Samhain Publishing) Worst Possible Birthday: Being sold into slavery by none other than your lover. Tover Duke’s rare ability to move anything instantly across light-years of space makes him a powerful, valuable asset to the Harmony Corporation, and a rock star among the people of the colonies. His life is luxurious. Safe. Routine. He has his pick of casual hookups passing through Dadelus-Kaku Station. His one brush with danger of any kind—the only bright spot in his otherwise boring

18 life—is Cruz Arcadio, a dark-haired, hard-bodied engineer whose physical prowess hints he’s something much more. When a terrorist abducts Tover, hurling him into a world of torture, exploitation and betrayal, it’s with shattering disbelief that he realizes his kidnapper is none other than Cruz. As Tover struggles to find the courage to escape his bondage, he begins to understand the only way to free his body, his mind—and his heart—is to trust the one man who showed him that everything about his once-perfect life was a lie. Warning: This story contains descriptions of extreme violence and assault. It also contains graphic sexual depictions. It also has a lot of birds. And pirate movies from the future. And romance.

GABE: Hell Squad #3 (Anna Hackett, novella, $2.99eb, indie) Hell Squad soldier Gabe Jackson has lost everything that mattered, including his twin brother. Now he just wants to kill the invading aliens anyway he knows how…and he knows a lot of ways. Previously part of a secret Army super-soldier project, he’s faster, stronger, deadlier…but on the inside, he’s a mass of rage, and pain, and grief—all waiting for a chance to drag him under. Until he finds her. Dr. Emerson Green had her life planned: thrive in the high-stress environment of the ER, build her career, have a great life. Then the raptor alien invasion happened. Now she’s the head of the medical team for the secret base sheltering human survivors outside of Sydney. She’s also in charge of patching up the soldiers who get too close to raptor claws. She’d never planned for this…and she’d never planned for sexy, brooding Gabe Jackson. As Emerson uncovers clues to the aliens’ secret plans for the human race, she and Gabe collide in a storm

of volatile passion. But the brooding soldier is as stubborn as he is silent, and Emerson knows she must convince him to reach out to her…because Gabe is a ticking time bomb about to go off.

LONELY SHORE: Chaos Station #2 (Jenn Burke and Kelly Jensen, novel, $3.24eb, Carina Press) All they can do is live day to day… Felix Ingesson has returned to his duties as the Chaos's engineer with Zander Anatolius, his exboyfriend-turned-broken-super-soldier, at his side. Hope means something again. But there’s nothing Felix can do to battle the alien poison flowing through Zander’s veins, or his imminent mental decline. With each passing day, the side effects of Zander’s experimental training are becoming more difficult to ignore. When the ruthless Agrius Cartel seeks their revenge—including an ambush and an attempt to kidnap the Chaos’s crew—Zander is pushed over the edge. He can no longer hide his symptoms, nor does he want to. But hurting Felix when he’s not in control of himself is Zander’s worst nightmare—when it nearly happens, he agrees to seek help. Even if that means trusting the unknown. As Zander places his life in alien hands, Felix appoints himself his lover’s keeper. And though he tries to be strong, he can’t ignore the fact that he might lose Zander…forever this time.

KEEP THE STARS RUNNING ( Lexi Andor, Tayla Andor, Leona Carver, Cassandra Pierce, Andrea Speed, anthology, $5.09eb, Less Than Three Press) Space is not always filled with adventures and glory. Not everybody goes racing off to battle evil and save the galaxy. Between the rebels, pirates, royals, and

19 spies are the everyday people who work hard just to get by and ensure everyone gets home safe. Less Than Three Press presents a collection of tales about the ordinary folks who keep the stars running. The Prince and the Programmer by Cassandra Pierce The Aurora Conspiracy by Lexi Ander About a Bot by Andrea Speed Flight Risk by Talya Andor Survival by Leona Carver

TO SAVE A LIFE: A'yen's Legacy #3 (Rachel Leigh Smith, novel, $4.99eb, indie) (A’yen's loved ones are under attack. To save them, he'll risk everything. Half the Lokmane are free and the resettling of Lok’ma is in progress. A'yen is crowned king, but it isn't stopping his enemies. Someone is after Ro, and the woman he's falling in love with is caught in the middle. When Fae is injured in a cave-in at a dig site, A'yen knows who’s to blame. Proving it is the hard part. Things get worse when he walks into a political trap, and Ro is framed for murder. Saving his reputation is easy compared to saving Ro. Ro’s demons come for him, taking him back to a life not worth living. A'yen races to save Ro before he can act on his deepest desire: killing his tormentor. Happily ever after can't happen if Ro is dead.

MY NAME IS A’YEN: A’yen’s Legacy #1 Print release (Rachel Leigh Smith, novel, $12.99pb, indie) They've taken everything from him. Except his name. The Loks Mé have been slaves for so long, freedom is a

distant myth A'yen Mesu no longer believes. A year in holding, because of his master's murder, has sucked the life from him. Archaeologist Farran Hart buys him to protect her on an expedition to the Rim, the last unexplored quadrant. Farran believes the Loks Mé once lived on the Rim and is determined to prove it. And win A'yen's trust. But she's a breeder's daughter and can't be trusted. Hidden rooms, information caches and messages from a long-dead king change A'yen's mind about her importance. When she's threatened he offers himself in exchange, and lands on the Breeder's Association's radar. The truth must be told. Even if it costs him his heart.

ODD COUPLING: Alien Love #2 (Jaylee Davis, novella, $3.99eb, Forever More Publishing) Bethany Montgomery’s peaceful life is shattered when an alien ship crashes near her isolated South Texas ranch. She rescues the huge feline pilot before a murderous gang of local ranchers can capture him. She’s determined to protect him. Falling in love with him isn’t part of her plan, but her heart won’t listen. Vren, a D’Lyrian warrior, survives the crash, but he’s not out of danger. The locals think the only good alien is a dead one, and they’re hot on his trail. The human female who comes to his aid doesn’t seem to fear him, even after he hisses at her for grabbing his tail. Coupling with her should be the last thing on his mind, but her scent calls to him. Has he finally found his life mate only to lose her?

PERIPHERAL PEOPLE: A Ylendrian Empire Novel (Reesa Herberth and Michelle Moore, novel, $4.99eb, Riptide Publishing) Corwin Menevie and Nika Santivan are decorated veterans of the Imperial Enforcement Coalition, and are perfectly capable of solving cases the oldfashioned way. When they’re paired with Westley Tavera and Gavin Hale, the most powerful Reader/Ground team to emerge from the Psionics Academy, it could either be the best thing that’s ever happened to crime fighting, or the makings of a quadruple homicide. During a routine investigation, West’s talent puts them on the trail of a brutal serial killer who traps his prey in a deadly mental playground. Then the killer starts baiting the team, laying psychic landmines at crime scenes and exposing IEC secrets. The strain of the case binds the agents closer together—so close that Nika and Gavin start sharing a room, and even the curmudgeonly Corwin finds himself as occupied with West as he is with the murders. But as West’s visions of death grow more violent, the only way out for all of them may be straight through the mind of a monster. If they’re not careful, they may forget which side of the hunt they’re on.

KEIR: Redemption #1 (Pippa Jay, novel, re-release, extended version, $4.99eb, indie) A demon waiting to die... An outcast reviled for his discolored skin and rumors of black magic, Keirlan de Corizi sees no hope for redemption. Imprisoned beneath the palace that was once his home, the legendary 'Blue Demon of Adalucien' waits for death to finally free him of his curse. But salvation comes in an unexpected guise. A woman determined to save him.

Able to cross space and time with a wave of her hand, Tarquin Secker has spent eternity on a hopeless quest. Drawn by a compulsion she can't explain, she risks her apparent immortality to save Keir, and offers him sanctuary on her homeworld, Lyagnius. But Quin has secrets of her own. When Keir mistakenly unleashes the dormant alien powers within him and earns exile from Lyagnius, Quin chooses to stand by him. Can he master his newfound abilities in time to save Quin from the darkness that seeks to possess her? Book One of the Redemption series and part of the Travellers Universe. Previously released by Lyrical Press Inc. 7th May 2012

THE DAY BEFORE: Jane Doe #1 (Liana Brooks, novel, SF w/romantic elements; HEA at end of series, $2.99eb/$6.99pb, HarperCollins/Harper Voyager Impulse) A body is found in the Alabama wilderness. The question is: Is it a human corpse … or is it just a piece of discarded property? Agent Samantha Rose has been exiled to a backwater assignment for the Commonwealth Bureau of Investigation, a death knell for her career. But then Sam catches a break—a murder—that could give her the boost she needs to get her life back on track. There's a snag, though: the body is a clone, and technically that means it's not a homicide. And yet, something about the body raises questions, not only for her, but for coroner Linsey Mackenzie. The more they dig, the more they realize nothing about this

21 case is what it seems â&#x20AC;Ś and for Sam, nothing about Mac is what it seems, either. This case might be the way out for her, but that way could be in a bodybag.

A thrilling new mystery from Liana Brooks, The Day Before will have you looking over your shoulder and questioning what it means to be human.

Releases - June We strive to include as many sci-fi romance releases as possible, but with current time constraints, we apologise in advance if your release was not included in our round-up.

REED: Hell Squad #4 (Anna Hackett, novella, $2.99eb, indie) As part of Hell Squad, former Coalition Navy SEAL Reed MacKinnon fights for humanity’s freedom from the alien invaders. He also fights for his brown-eyed girl—the woman he rescued from the aliens’ secret laboratory. He admires her quiet strength and will to survive, not to mention her elfin looks and curvy body…but he knows he has to keep his distance. She’s nowhere near ready for what he has to offer and he’ll protect her from everything, even his own powerful desires.

prisoner with whom she's formed a strong bond. Sazo's an artificial intelligence. He's saved her from captivity and torture, but he's also put her in the middle of a conflict, leaving Rose with her loyalties divided. Captain Dav Jallan doesn't know why he and his crew have stumbled across an almost legendary Class 5 battleship, but he's not going to complain. The only problem is, all its crew are dead, all except for one strange, new alien being.

Energy scientist Natalya Vasin has lived through hell. Still struggling after her captivity, scarred by the aliens’ experimentation, all she wants is to be normal again...and she wants Reed MacKinnon. But the rugged soldier is holding back, treating her like glass, and she won’t accept that from anybody.

She calls herself Rose. She seems small and harmless, but less and less about her story is adding up, and Dav has a bad feeling his crew, and maybe even the four planets, are in jeopardy. The Class 5's owners, the Tecran, look set to start a war to get it back and Dav suspects Rose isn't the only alien being who survived what happened on the Class 5. And whatever else is out there is playing its own games.

As Reed and Natalya wage a sensual battle of desires, they also work together to decipher a mysterious alien energy cube. Hell Squad need Natalya’s expertise and they need her to go back into alien territory to use it. But on a mission to destroy an alien outpost, secrets are uncovered—of what the raptors really did to Natalya. Secrets that mean the future she wants with Reed is just an impossible dream.

In this race for the truth, he's going to have to go against his leaders and trust the dark horse.

DARK HORSE (Michelle Diener, novel, $4.99eb, Eclipse Imprint) * Sneak Peek in this issue Some secrets carry the weight of the world. Rose McKenzie may be far from Earth with no way back, but she's made a powerful ally—a fellow

THE TIDE OF WAR (Lori A. Witt, novel, $4.99eb/$14.39pb, Riptide Publishing) Lieutenant Commander Kyle West is one of Earth Fleet’s greatest fighter pilots. Every day, he leads his squadron into battle over Earth’s cities in a seemingly endless war against a vicious alien race, defending his home and his loved ones. Millions of miles away, the Fleet’s Elite Squadron attacks from another angle, engaging the enemy on its home turf. Casualties are high, and the Squadron needs more of the Fleet’s very best. But joining the Elite is a death sentence—a surety Kyle isn’t willing to face. Until a devastating attack wipes out the family

23 he refused to leave. Commander Andrei Dezhnyov, an Elite Squadron gunner, isn’t sure what to make of the cocky new American pilot. Kyle is equally uncertain about the snarly Russian, but as they warm up to each other, their tentative alliance becomes a deep bond—one that endangers them both when a daring and disobedient rescue reveals secrets that call into question everything they’ve ever believed about their enemy. Secrets that their superiors would kill to protect.

BENGAL’S QUEST: Breed #30 (Lora Leigh, erotic, novel, $10.99eb, Berkley) He was a shadow, ever shifting and insinuating, able to blend in everywhere and anywhere. The elusive ideal conceived and created by the Genetics Council, he went by just as many names as he had identities—the last one being Gideon. Now calling himself Graeme, he hides in plain sight, terrifyingly close to his goal. A rogue Bengal Breed, he has loyalties to no one but himself. And he has a need for vengeance that surges hot and swift through his veins. Graeme plans to exact an extreme and ruthless vendetta against those who wronged him—Breed and human alike. All will suffer his wrath: those who created him, those who pretended to love him, and those who betrayed him. That includes the one at the center of it all: a seductive, enigmatic woman helpless against the man whose desire is just as desperate as his need to destroy. And he’s on her scent…

GEMINI: DISILLUSIONED: Beyond Fairytales #28 (Catherine Peace, novella, $.99eb, Decadent Publishing) Being one of the Embassy’s glorified treasure-seekers has its perks… Komandan Uriah Jacobs recovers ancient artifacts in exchange for more than just decent pay; he also receives guaranteed protection from his former owners, the nyx…until an emergency landing on a too-familiar colony brings him face-to-face with his past life and something more—a surprisingly priceless treasure in the form of a human woman. A slave to the nyx since childhood… Shadi spends her waking hours in the forge, dreaming of rescuing her brother with the help of a man she once worshipped like a father. A crashed ship on the colony becomes her only hope to escape. But before she can steal the ship, the pilot abducts her. They may be the same species, but will he help her find her Shilah? Their attraction is undeniable… Fighting it seems inconsequential as they evade the nyx's bounty hunter and uncover a conspiracy that shines unwanted light on Shadi's past and reveals the corruption in Uri’s beloved Embassy, placing their fledgling love in danger. As the universe systematically falls apart, will Shadi and Uri’s newfound passion be enough to keep them alive?

THE CHOOSING: The Pruxnae #1 (Lucy Varna, novel, $.99eb, Bone Diggers Press) Ziri Mokuru has lived her entire life in the rural village of Arden Hollow on the planet Tersi. While her parents are off having adventures and being Very Important People, she’s struggled simply to find a place where she belongs. One night, she investigates a disturbance in her home and discovers an armor-

24 clad man sorting through her belongings. Her first thought is for her parents’ safety, not to question why this man is in her home late at night without even the courtesy of knocking. After all, no one among the trusting Tersii breaks into someone else’s home without a good reason. Ryn abid Alna has an excellent reason for sneaking into Ziri’s home. After years spent scraping together enough vud for the bride price, he’s finally ready to steal a wife. One look at Ziri’s sweet smile and Ryn decides no other woman will do. She can fix anything she touches, so why not the loneliness he’s lived with since he was enslaved as a young boy? Though Ziri longs for love, she’s not so sure she’s ready to settle down with the man who kidnapped her, especially after he jumps her into a nest of Sweepers, a sinister alien race bent on mayhem and destruction. As the day draws near when she faces Ryn’s family on the Choosing field, Ziri ponders the hardest decision of her life: Fight for Ryn and the place he’s made for her in his heart or choose another man as a life mate and risk never knowing love.

SECURED MAIL: Planet Valhalla #2 (Kate Pearce, novel, $2.99eb, indie) Sven Magnusson is stuck on Earth serving his queen and dealing with a culture where women don't seem to want a man's protection. As he struggles to understand Earth females, the queen encourages him to get laid. Of course, Thea Cooper, the only woman who appeals to him, thinks men are useful for one thing and on a one-nightonly basis. Despite their

clash of sexual cultures and the fury of their heated erotic encounters, can Sven convince Thea that she belongs with him on Planet Valhalla? Note: Though this book can be read as a stand alone, it is the second book in the Planet Valhalla series. Contains ménage.

SHADOW FIRES: Shielder #5 (Catherine Spangler, novel, $2.99eb, indie) Jenna dan Aron, a Shielder, lives a solitary existence, shunned by her people because she has visions and can see the future. She’s even foreseen her own destiny: to be a human offering, a mate for a savage Leor warlord. When two Shielder colonies need to be rescued, the Leors who are their only hope demand a bride for their leader in return. Knowing she can’t deny fate, Jenna steps forward. The Leors are a hybrid race and only part human. Arion of Saura finds mating outside his race abhorrent, but he has no choice, as his kind faces extinction. His life is ruled by hard logic and physical prowess, with no room for softness or emotion. Bound to him, Jenna faces a life of barbarism with a mate who seems more beast than man. In the relentless heat of the wild Sauran desert, Jenna and Arion wage a battle of wills, until they discover that the heart is mightier than any weapon—and that love can forge shadow and fire together.

STAR CRUISE: MAROONED (Veronica Scott, short novel, $.99eb, indie) * Sneak Peek in this issue Meg Antille works long hours on the charter cruise ship Far Horizon so she can send credits home to her family. Working hard to

25 earn a promotion to a better post (and better pay), Meg has no time for romance. Former Special Forces soldier Red Thomsill only took the berth on the Far Horizon in hopes of getting to know Meg better, but so far she’s kept him at a polite distance. A scheduled stopover on the idyllic beach of a nature preserve planet may be his last chance to impress the girl. But when one of the passengers is attacked by a wild animal it becomes clear that conditions on the lushly forested Dantaralon aren’t as advertised— the ranger

station is deserted, the defensive perimeter is down…and then the Far Horizon’s shuttle abruptly leaves without any of them. Marooned on the dangerous outback world, romance is the least of their concerns, and yet Meg and Red cannot help being drawn to each other once they see how well they work together. But can they survive long enough to see their romance through? Or will the wild alien planet defeat them, ending their romance and their lives before anything can really begin?

Write for us! Length: 2,000 to 7,500 words. Payment: 2.5 cents/word (US) paid upon publication, promotional biography with two links, and a complimentary quarter-page advertisement. Deadline for Issue #8: 01 August, 2015. Rights sought: Six-month exclusive world digital rights from date of publication; non-exclusive thereafter. Other info: One short story will be published per issue. Please send only edited and polished work. Due to time constraints, we are unable to give personalized feedback on rejected stories. Stories that tie-in to a previously established world will be considered, but story must stand alone. All sub-genres of science fiction will be considered. Any heat level, from sweet to erotic, will be considered. Original, previously unpublished fiction only. No fan fiction, please. Story should meld the Science Fiction and Romance genres, and must have an upbeat ending. Not quite sure what we’re looking for? Read our original fiction in previous issues. No multiple submissions. No stories that have previously been rejected by us. Simultaneous submissions are accepted, but please inform us if the story is placed elsewhere.

Submit! Standard manuscript format, please. Send brief cover letter with biographical information and publication history, along with attached story (.RTF or .DOC format) to Diane Dooley — Fiction #at# SciFiRomanceQuarterly #dot# org — by deadline.

On being an SFR prospector The Cosmic Lounge with Heather Massey

Niche genres translate to a wealth of possibilities for meeting one’s entertainment needs. They accomplish such a feat by their ability to operate with an immense amount of creative freedom and doing so outside the box of mainstream venues. Yet the lines are starting to blur because advances in technology across the board has leveled the playing field. Niche markets are now more visible and accessible. In short, they are the future face of entertainment. Currently, mainstream still dominates. But I can live with that for a bit longer, and here’s why. I belong to a club of adventurous readers and film buffs who discover stories long before general audiences. In particular, I love being among the first to discover a science fiction romance title. When it comes to trying out SFR books, ones with zero reviews or ratings is not a deterrent for me in the least. I don’t need to wait for others to vet sci-fi romances before I read them. Rather, I want to be among the first to explore this new territory. Learning about a new release, especially one by a debut author, gives me a huge rush. The fact that most SFR titles are digital-first these days is a plus. Like an old timey gold prospector, I’m one of the first on the scene and get first crack at digging up the treasure. Long before James Cameron’s film Avatar, a ton of women were penning action-packed sci-fi romances set on alien worlds (some were published, others bloomed in fan fiction). In terms of SFR, he was building on the foundation of a firmly established genre. So readers like me were already there, ahead of the curve, consuming stories by authors who are the true leaders of this particular genre pack. Remember how a bunch of seagulls in Pixar’s Finding Nemo kept saying “Mine! Mine! Mine!”? That captures how I feel about SFR. It’s like a super special secret genre only a few select readers have access to, mainly because they’re willing to seek it out. Some folks feel if they haven’t heard of something, or if a publisher hasn’t propped it up with a big marketing campaign, it can’t be any good. Me, I’m the opposite: “Oh, a little-known SFR. I bet it could be awesome!” With sampling, low ebook prices, and information about the book at my fingertips, the risk of trying something new is minimal. So I have no qualms about plumbing the depths of SFR time and time again. Speaking of depths, Lise MacTague’s Depths of Blue is one of my recent discoveries. I learned about it through one of my periodic “sci-fi romance” Google searches. The publisher, Bella Books, had tagged the book with “sci-fi romance”. Smart! The blurb intrigues me, check. Then I wanted to know how much coverage the book had. After searching the author’s name, I discovered she’d written only one guest post (at the time of this writing). “Oooh!” I said to myself. “I’ll be one of the first to board this here boat about a ruthless business woman and a sniper heroine on a collision course to love.” Welcome to my catnip, people! I also discover titles because I know many of the genre’s accessible authors. For example, KS Augustin. In the interest of full disclosure, she’s the editor of Sci-Fi Romance Quarterly, but she also wrote Restoration, an SFR with thought-provoking themes and a non-Western setting. Wow! Hearts were in my eyes as I read her book. It pays to know people writing niche books, it really does. I also love knowing niche-savvy bloggers like R.K. Shiraishi of Smart Girls Love SciFi & Paranormal Romance, who gave me a heads up about Less Than Three Press’ Keep The Stars Running anthology. Exploring the niche SFR realm means I’ll get to read stories ranging in content from space opera fare like Ruby Lionsdrake’s Mercenary Instinct and Elizabeth Andre’s Taijiku, which promises giant alien sea monsters and a lesbian romance!

SFR is the only place where I can get my android romance fix on a consistent, reliable basis. Because the stories employ the female gaze, they’re far more appealing to me than mainstream films like Alex Garland’s Ex Machina (the poster alone smacks of sexual exploitation—no thanks.). Books in my to-be-read pile include Diane Saxon’s Short Circuit Time, Maeve Alpin’s A Woman of Intellectual Means, and Yolanda Sfetsos’s Dash. A s a niche fan, I was able to be the proud first reader of Jody Wallace’s hilarious sci-fi romance parody The Adventures of Mari Shu. With P.J. Dean’s The Felig Chronicles under my belt, I can tell you she was writing about black heroine Tina Cain before Empire’s Cookie became a thing. SFR offers a variety of stories in all kinds of interesting nooks and crannies. Going prospecting for them is part of the fun and places us in control of our entertainment destinies. And the value of being able to say we got there first? Priceless.

Are alien abduction trope mash-ups on the rise? Scopebox with Charlee Allden

In a previous Scopebox column, I called the alien abduction trope the beans and rice of sci-fi romance. I apologize for touching on the same trope again so soon, but several recent releases have brought me back to it by creating some awesome mash-ups. It shouldn’t be surprising that, as our favorite little-genrethat-could grows, authors would seek to put their own stamp on tried-andtrue tropes. The books I want to discuss here are variants of the alien abduction trope that distance the hero from the actual kidnapping, assigning that task to “evil” aliens. This twist often casts the hero as fellow victim-turned rescuer as he helps the heroine escape. The earliest book of this type I recall reading was Lord of the Dark Sun by Stobe Piel (2002). The heroine is kidnapped and tossed into a pit with primitive humans that are used as slave labor to mine whatever planet they’re on. Here comes an alien abduction-slave planet mash-up, right? Yes, but not for long. Halfway through, they escape. Herein lies my greatest concern with this twist—the second half of the book. The first half in this mash-up, abduction and escape, has great features that make it well suited to sci-fi romance. There is the appealing idea of a hero that has survived in a lawless place, not only by brute strength but also by cleverness. Then we add in a bit of the hero could have anyone but chooses our heroine above all others. Add a dollop of surviving together while struggling to hold onto their humanity and you have a winning emotional storyline. The abduction becomes a method of taking the heroine out of her element and adds drama and suspense. However, unlike the original trope, this twist resolves the major conflict at a point where we are not yet convinced the couple will stick together. For the reader to have complete satisfaction, the couple must prove their love will thrive in whatever world they end up on and without the artificial closeness of captivity. With this trope-twist mash-up, there is usually an after part where hero and heroine go off to live on an alien world. We’re talking about a whole new set of conflicts to overcome. When it’s done well, you get double fun. But it’s really, really, really hard to do well. For me the before and after storyline introduces a bit of a risk to the reader’s enjoyment of the story. With two different sorts of circumstances and character goals, you could end up with two great tastes that taste great together or you can end up with a sour ball of meh in your mouth. Let’s go back to Lord of the Dark Sun. During the escape, the hero and heroine are separated and the hero is thought to have died in the escape attempt. The story takes up after years of separation. The hero is not the same man. The story conflicts are distantly related but the couple conflicts are completely different. Although I love this author, this particular book didn’t work for me. For all the reasons I loved the first half, the second half was only meh. A slightly less bothersome sour mouth experience happened to me again recently with Venomous by Penelope Fletcher. Loved the first half of the story, but the second have was only okay for me. The book was part of the Kindle Unlimited subscription service and was phenomenally well read. I don’t know how many other readers had the same trouble with the second half. Anecdotally, I can tell you I heard a lot of people say it was "long" which is true. But when a book is awesome-sauce people don’t often worry about length. I did finish the book and overall recommend it with one caveat. It took me twice as long to read the second half as it did the first and the hero lost a bit of his shine for me by the end. It has hundreds of positive reviews and even I will likely read the next book in the series. It doesn’t look to use the same tropes.

The second book I want to talk about from this quarter very clearly illustrates how having an alien abduction story where the hero is not the abductor can really shine. It also solves the escape-is-not-the-end problem by replacing a slave planet with a barely habitable planet and a castaway feel. Ice Planet Barbarians by Ruby Dixon, released as both a serial and a complete novel, seemed to show up in everyone’s read pile. It has tons to love and very little to complain about (for me, I’m sure a few will call an insta-love foul despite the author’s efforts to head that off). This story has a ship full of abducted human women who crash land on a Hoth-like planet, inhabited by what we later learn is a tribe of big blue alien barbarians. The call-it-what-it-is title and unabashedly on the nose cover, featuring a woman in the arms of a big blue alien hero, likely added to this story’s success. Despite the call-back to the barbarians of the 1 990s futuristic romances, Ice Planet Barbarians clearly speaks to modern sensibilities. The heroine does a fare bit of saving herself before meeting the alien barbarian. After the heroine’s earlier wins, it’s hard to gripe about the fact that the hero, who proves to be gentle and caring, has to save her from the weather. She still has to save the other women and keep them all from being recaptured when the bad aliens come looking for their lost ship. I was also entertained by the way the language issues are handled. It worked crazy-good for me. You hear the internal thoughts of each character when in their POV, but the two can’t communicate with language until a third into the story. We get a touch of humorous attempts to communicate without a common language, but switch to better understanding before it becomes laborious. All in all, it’s a smart bit of writing and a well handled mash-up between alien abduction, barbarian hero, and survival story. Because the hero is not the abductor, he is likable with no reservations. Removing the necessity for an after-escape phase of the story eliminates the dangerous dichotomy of before and after conflicts. It is a much smoother read, with a story that compels you to keep turning the pages from beginning to end. To wrap things up, I say bring on the twists and mash-ups. I can’t wait to see what the next big sci-fi romance read will be.

A Matter of Trust (Greta van der Rol) Review by Jo Jones

This is a short 94 page novella that totally worked for me and here is why. Lets start with back-story, something that is often difficult to develop in a novella. For our two main characters, that back-story is fleshed out in just a few paragraphs. Those paragraphs highlight the intelligence of both and the interest they have in common. There is no romance at first, just real liking between the two. From that start it was easy to see how their attraction could grow and develop. There is also enough world building to support the story. This is a character-driven story. Amira is a widow and also a princess. Admiral UlMellor is one of the few of his people who come out into the world. Amira is no shrinking violet. When she finds herself in difficulty, she immediately goes into action to save herself. Admiral Ul-Mellor is the less-than-attractive hero. Not because of his actions, but because of his physical appearance. I won't tell you how he looks but I will say I would find him very scary. His actions do not match his appearance and, when it becomes apparent that Amira could use help, he does not hesitate. There was little new in the actual plot. Amira is about to be forced into an unwanted marriage with a less-than-attractive character. The characters and their actions are what set this apart from similar stories. A Matter of Trust is a well-written action filled story with great characters and a believable romance. In addition it is a fun story to read. I do hope that Amira and Ul-Mellor will show up in future stories. I would love a series featuring the two.

Breathe (Kelley Harvey) Review by Norm Zeeman

This is part one of a multipart story. At 173 pages, I found it a very quick read, but too short for full character development, although the story starts right at the point where we get to the action. The characters we meet at the beginning are a teen girl, Lexa, and her hunky teen friend, Gabe. Gabe's family tells him that his father is a winged alien and they are waiting to see if Gabe, the oldest son, will also have wings. He does. There were three alien Zellans who found themselves on our planet. They settled down, got married, had kids and the 'how' of the Zella-to-Earth travel is left very vague. Lexa, too, is unaware of her alien heritage and when her wings develop, she is terrified that she is a freak and so hides them from everyone. By the fourth chapter, we have the possibility of yet another alien creature with the ability to blend into the shadows and be really scary, but it never gets much clearer than that for this book. Gabe and Lexa have feelings for each other that go beyond the really strong friendship they grew up with. At the beginning, Gabe doesn't know Lexa is also half alien, so he is scared to share his wings with her and she doesn't know she and he are both alien so she doesn't share her wings with him. I felt it wasn't much of a relationship if they don't trust each other enough to share something this important, but I get that this is a plot device to create interest and tension. In Chapter 18, when we add in Nathaniel, the equally hunky son of the third alien, who just happens to be close in age to Lexa and Gabe and also has his wings, the

authors have created the quintessential teen love triangle. Nathaniel and Gabe make the mistake of letting Lexa know once she gets her wings that she is the only possible mate for both of them and she has to choose. This sets up the conflict, but the big thing is that Lexa is terrified of heights. She doesn't think much about her wings as she will hopefully never get off the ground. Each one of three has an additional gift from their alien DNA'Lexa can find lost things and the other two's gift are equally useful but not really defined. I really liked the foreshadowing, it was enough to keep the tension going and the dueling chapters by Lexa then Gabe, gave me short quick infodumps from two points of view, which helped me understand the background. I wish there had been more on the aliens, but possibly additional details will be included in the next book. I did like the characters, but felt they verged too close to being stereotypes. The teen angst was thick enough to cut with a knife, overshadowing the rest of the story so that you don't really know where it is going. However, the end was killer—totally unexpected—although the foreshadowing was there, too. I just didn't catch it. I'm not sure how the author will recover from this ending unless one of the other characters comes up with a "maguffin". You know, that thing, gadget, gizmo, superpower, alien technology without which the plot can not move forward. I hate it when it's done badly, but love it when it's done well. I can't wait to see what happens in the next book. This feels like a teen book, there is no sex, but some hot and heavy kissing. The comparison to Pittacus Lore's I am Number Four series or James Patterson's Angel young adult series, really does have to be made as both of these series are stellar "aliens hiding on earth" and "aliens with wings" stories. This one doesn't quite measure up, either because it was too short or just didn't have enough background and punch to make it stand out from the crowd—but I'll read the next because I have to know where it goes.

Caught in Amber (Cathy Pegau) Review by The Book Pushers Publisher: Carina Press Publish Date: Jan 28th How I got this book: ARC from the publisher via Netgalley Recently out of rehab, Sasha James is determined to keep her head down, complete her parole, and never touch amber again. The chip in her neck controls her cravings for the highly addictive drug, but also tracks her every move. Not that she goes anywhere other than work and the halfway house she calls home—a far cry from her luxurious former life as lover of the mining colony's top drug dealer, Guy Christiansen. Agent Nathan Sterling has no desire to see Sasha fall back into amber, but his sister has become Guy's latest conquest and the unexpectedly attractive Sasha is the key to getting her back. So in exchange for an introduction, he offers Sasha the one thing she can't refuse'her freedom. From the chip, her parole, and even the planet if she wants. Though he would be sorry to see her go… Torn between her growing attraction to Nathan, fear of Guy and the allure of amber, Sasha accepts. But who will save her if Guy refuses to let her go a second time? (This blurb came from the author's website.)

I was browsing Netgalley (I know this appears to be a common theme) looking for upcoming books when I ran across Caught in Amber. I was already reading Rulebreaker, also by Pegau and set in the same world, so I took a look at the blurb. Everything about it just screamed my name so I went ahead and requested a copy.

My advice is that you do not start reading this if you have anything you are supposed to do for the next several hours, including such things like sleep, eat, or go to work. After introducing the characters and the set-up, Pegau does not let up on the tension until the book ends. Sasha was such a complex person. She was paying her dues for breaking the law and determined to do what she needed to live out the terms of her parole while she regained as much of a life as she could. Sasha went from the pretty girl next door to the mistress of a suspected drug kingpin, drug addict, and then ex-convict. Along the way her family decided that she had made her choices so they decided she was no longer part of the family. Sasha was strong enough to leave Guy but not strong enough to resist her amber addiction. She was caught shoplifting in an attempt to get enough money to pay for her next dose. As a result of stealing, when the reader meets Sasha all she had was a few acquaintances, her permanent convict chip and a weekly appointment at the parole office to ensure she stayed off of amber. Amber was the drug of choice for the mining colony and it seemed to possess a mixture of the effects of cocaine and methamphetamine. Its name was derived from the signature color. Nathan wanted one thing and that was to rescue his sister, Kylie, from Guy's clutches and her amber addiction. Privy to knowledge about Guy's latest set of mistresses, none of whom were still living, and their physical similarities to Sasha, he deduced that Guy still had an obsession with Sasha that he could use to his advantage. Nathan didn't want anything bad to happen to Sasha but he also was willing to do and promise whatever he had to gain Sasha's assistance. I thought he was extremely callous but it was understandable. Heck, he even thought he should be ashamed of some of the things he promised. However, as the book continued and Nathan began to see Sasha as more than a tool his mindset changed. That resulted in my liking Nathan as the hero and not just as a protective older brother. Pegau had my sympathies for Sasha from the very beginning. Even though she made a series of bad choices she had learned her lesson. Not to mention she developed an iron will and refused to get sucked back into Guy's world. I was really worried about her as she spent more time dealing with Guy's obsession and around the temptation of amber while juggling Nathan's interest. I was continually amazed by her choices and her dedication to get Nathan's sister out despite the danger to herself, and not just physically but mentally. In fact she was the one who kept Nathan from destroying their chances of success several times. Nathan took a while to grow on me. A few times he verged on TSTL actions brought about by the combination of his sense of protectiveness and guilt at bringing Sasha into the situation. Once Nathan's viewpoint of Sasha changed, I totally fell for him. He played the criminal so well yet he also felt responsible for everyone. I enjoyed his interactions with his work partner, Natalia Hallowell, and Guy's personal assistant, Genevieve Caine. He never once treated them like they were less than equals which I thought boded well for his continued relationship with Sasha. My heart completely melted as he honored his bargain with Sasha, gave her the freedom to do whatever she wanted and then asked if she would stay with him. As I said in the beginning, Pegau continued to crank up the tension as the book progressed. Each time I thought I could take a breather, things got more exciting which increased my reading enjoyment. I really enjoyed the tension build up and how Sasha and Nathan got to know each other. I also liked the supporting characters such as Natalia and Genevieve who had so many layers hinted at but never revealed. Pegau also makes sure that the bad boys get their comeuppance one way or another. While Caught in Amber is the second book set in this particular world you do not have to read Rulebreaker first but it will introduce you to the world and its peculiarities. I enjoyed reading Caught in Amber and I am looking forward to Pegau's next book. I give Caught in Amber an A-

Chaos Station (Jenn Burke and Kelly Jensen) Review by Norm Zeeman

These two authors make the reading experience a joy. Zed has been in covert ops for the last four years and when he sees news footage of his good friend Emma killing civilians on a space station, he needs to find a ship to get him there fast so he can help get her out of trouble. The chance of him finding Felix's ship was practically impossible, but when they come face-to-face, Zed feels that his looming insanity has finally overtaken him and he can't believe that the lover he thought was dead is standing in front of him. Thinking Felix dead, Zed had immersed himself in a new and experimental covert military program that had him in deep cover for the last few years. Unaware that Zed was deep undercover, Felix thinks Zed abandoned him. Zed has just resurfaced after being forcibly retired at the end of the war with the alien Stin and had never heard that Felix had been rescued from their torture. The Chaos is the trading ship Felix and Elias bought together and Elias is Captain and Felix is Chief Engineer. Felix was taken in as an engineer by Elias and his father on their family spaceship as they were the ones who kept Felix alive after his escape from the Stin and he feels like this is his family and second home. That is where we start the story and the author wastes no time getting us into the action. It's a lot of world building in a very short number of pages, but the authors keep us turning pages to find out how these star-crossed lovers fare. These two have some serious history that they have to work through, but Emma's rescue takes precedence and even though both of them are invested in each other, neither sees a way to make a long-term relationship work with their current conditions. Felix knows Zed is hiding something, but can't get him to divulge what is wrong as it has to do with the deep cover mission he was on. Zed doesn't want to draw Felix into his troubles and thinks that as soon as this mission is over, he'll retreat back into the shadows until death quickly finds him. Felix doesn't want to lose the only home he has had for the last four years so he's not willing to put himself in line to be hurt again, but his feelings for Zed are strong and deep. You get the visceral impact of the emotion in Zed and Felix's sidelong glances and the way they each smile when the other is mentioned and you can feel the tightlystretched, sexual tension in every scene they are in together. Each one of these characters has so much baggage, history and quirks that they feel more real than my next-door neighbor, definitely more likeable and oh-so-easy on the eyes. Secondary characters, Captain Elias, ship doctor Nessa and the alien engineer Qek add so much to this story in how much they care for Felix and want him to be happy. Qek's grasp of human humor is hilarious as much when he gets it wrong as when he gets it right, and it always brings a chuckle. Even the setting, while being a generic spaceship and space station, has just enough detail to make it feel like a real place, not necessarily a place you want to visit, but real, nonetheless. Small details like the accessories in Felix's cabin lend depth to his character and Zed's reaction to them shows his connection to Felix. While the background of Zed, Felix and Emma's military history is what drives the story, the connection between Zed and Felix comes through with emotion-packed conversations where what they don't say is just as important as what they do. The military background is well written, not so much a part of the story that the authors have to get "mil-spec" technical, but you get a good feel for how it drives the characters now and helped define their personalities from their shared experiences in the past. It's done so well that you only need a sentence here and there to bring a wealth of implied and remembered history to their motives and reasoning. The science is kept well to the background and I couldn't find any glaring errors. That is such a

nice change and will easily lend itself to this book never becoming obsolete because the science in it was bad or outdatedâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;I love when that happens. I can go back and re-read it as many times as I want toâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and I will want to. Now we get to the sex. Several scenes show rock hard abs, strong shoulders, melting glances and the shower scene was to die for. However, these two alpha males show enough dysfunction to make me want to slap them and lock them in a cabin together until they work it out This is M/M, beautifully written, but not graphic, while still being so sensuous and caring, that you just have to root for these two guys to get a happy ending. This is exactly how you write "show, don't tell" and every budding author should read this to learn how it's done. The length was perfect; the pacing wasn't rushed but the action scenes weren't drawn out to the point where you want to skim. The sex was awesome, but not Laurell-Hamilton-over-detailed enough to make me skip pages. The storyline was solid enough to move the characters forward with a real plot with real motivations and the super-hero-soldier stuff and its aftermath felt like it could happen to anyone. All around, one of the best science fiction romances I've read all year.

Code Name: Gypsy Moth (Melodie Campbell) Review by Toni Adams

This is not a space opera. Let's just be clear on that. What ever intention there was for this to be a space opera was non-existent. For this to be a space opera, there would have drama, story, and action set in a science fiction backdrop. The main location for the story is a bar set on a planet of aliens, so one point on the checklist is marked. Code Name:Gypsy Moth is a "space opera". After doing what sounds like the Lorena Bobitt on a fellow high ranking official, Countess Antonella becomes Nell the spy who is undercover as barkeep on a docking planet. What was she undercover for? No idea. Only in the two years that she was there, she nabbed herself a muscle man boyfriend named Dal (who read and acted like Hellboy to me for some reason). Dal is shadowed by an ex-Reaper (considering "reaper" has a such a bad connotation, I'm assuming a bad group) named Alpha. So what happens in this story? Your guess is as good as mine. There were about a gazillion (all right, not really a gazillion but it sure felt like it) plots that went nowhere. What was the danger? Throwing a body down the wrong incincerator or having her wooden furniture become kindle. No,really, what was the danger?! As far as I can tell, none really. It seemed like everyone else was in danger. The people around them were either pulverised or in danger of death. It was as if everyone else was wearing a red shirt but the main characters. They were able to walk away from pretty intense fights, solves problems pretty easily, and then decided to go off planet so that Nell and Dal could get married. It's not the worse story I've read. Since it was only about 60 pages in pdf form, it was a "short" read. Although the weird writing made it seem like I was reading a long novel. The first person narrative can be bit tiresome and repetitve. There's nothing in the story for me to be emotionally invested in. The cuteness of the characters can go for so long before it becomes boring. It really did feel like I was skimming the surface of a potentially great story.

Flipping back to the cover, I noticed that it had in big large letters: IMAJIN QWICKIES. After some brief internet searching, this is my thought on it: not a good idea. Whatever the point of this subset is, it results in churning out an annoying and frustrating story. Not frustration stemming from teasing a great story out of my grasp. It's frustration that there was no story for me to see the great potential of it in the first place. It should just have to be short, not stuttering or trailing off into distracted transgressions. When the reader has to constantly flip back to the previous page to see if they missed a paragraph, it makes for a very frustrating read. Normally, this novella would be chucked out but curiosity and the fact it was so short kept me going. The tagline for this story on the interwebs has it written that it has Campbell's type of humor. If the humor was all the nods towards science fiction pop culture jokes, then brava, accomplished. The tagline for Imagine Quickies is Qwick reads for Busy People. Busy people aren't idiots. They are short on time. If you are aiming to cater to this demographic,then encourage stories that engrossing, makes their short breaks transcendent, and actually leaves an impression. Moving aside from the cringeworthy spelling of 'quick', this whole little subsection of the publishing company needs to be re-worked. A "qwick" :;shudder:; story should be a platform for authors to impress readers with the challenge of presenting a short but well written story with a cohesive plot, meaningful actions, and so forth. A short story is limited by the number of pages, so a good story is really, really important. The loose ends in Code Name: Gypsy Moth do nothing to entice me to continue on the story when this story failed to cement my interest. This really brings to mind the comparison to this and anthologies. Anthologies have been popping up on my radar. Big name authors (like Tanith Lee or Neil Gaiman) will draw my eyes to the collection but it is also with the anticipation of finding a new author to follow along. The assumption is that if a lesser well known author is between the pages of commercially known authors, then the anthology editor must have found their work somewhat equal to big guns. Which has been true. Many authors have been introduced to me that I am now following. So then what is the point of Imagin Qwickies? A glimpse to the authors potential ? Showcasing their established authors? If so, then none of this was percieved well on my end. With that said, I sincerely hope that the author has a chance to expand on this universe or space opera with more in depth and clarification. A barkeep/ spy/ fiance heroine is pretty darn interesting in the realm of science fiction. The characters are the strongest part in the story. The action description is the second strongest (some of it quite wonderfully graphic). Overall, this just reads like a late night science fiction episode from the nineties.

Deadly Lover (Charlee Allden) Review by Marlene Harris

The setting of Deadly Lover reminds me a lot of Sonya Clark's Trancehack. Both are set in a near future where people who can practice "magic" are locked up in ghettos to keep them away from the rest of the population. When I say "magic", I'm using the Arthur C. Clarke definition of "any technology sufficiently advanced is indistinguishable from" and not spellcasting. There's also a resemblance to the near-future setting of J.D. Robb's In Death series. Deadly Lover takes place on an Earth that is ahead of us but not terribly far distant in time. The two visions of the future are different in the details, but the worlds aren't that much different from our own. In Deadly Lover, that difference has been caused by the introduction of the Ormney people into our midst. The Ormney are humanoid but not quite humanâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;they have a native ability to travel similarly to a Star Trek transporter, but without using a machine. It's an inborn talent, and some of them are better at it than

others. It is also the way that the Ormney traveled from their dying planet to ours. It's not clear whether their planet was merely far away in space, or in a different space-time continuum altogether. There's a certain amount of handwavium on this point, but it doesn't get in the way of the story. Also, just for added references, the place that the Ormney go to while they are unsyncing and resyncing feels a lot like the "between" in Anne McCaffrey's Pern series. Without either the dragons or the rapey tropes that my friend Cass hates so much. The Ormney have only been on Earth for 20 years, and interspecies relationships are still very much in the building stage. There is a lot of suspicion and fear on both sides, but not yet much real understanding. Mostly because the Ormney are keeping a shit-ton of critical secrets. Lily Rowan has already been exposed to a few too many of those secrets. In her job as a civilian security consultant working for a very secretive para-military research company, Lily was nearly killed when a training exercise went seriously pear-shaped and her Ormney teammate was poisoned and went bat-shit crazy. Kiq went crazy because he was exposed to a toxin that works one way on humans, and an entirely different way on Ormney. A secret that was known to his people but not revealed until it was much too late. And then it gets out, as important and dangerous secrets inevitably do. The moment that Agent Lily Rowan is cleared for duty, she finds herself in the middle of a crime in progressâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;yet another Ormney is exhibiting the same symptoms as her training partner, and she is forced to kill him to protect civilians from his murderous rampage. No good deed goes unpunished. Lily finds herself assigned to investigate the incident, and the series of dead bodies, both human and Ormney, that follows in its wake. Too many elements of the case mess with Lily's peace of mind. The police detective assigned to the case is her estranged cousin. The chief human diplomat for Ormney-human relations is her ex-fiancĂŠ, and the chief investigator from the Ormney side is a man that Lily finds all too compelling. But Ormney have no interest in human females. Or is that another half-truth that the Ormney have allowed humans to believe? And is that the secret behind the rash of murders, or is it something even more deadly? Escape Rating B+: This is a compelling story. I loved the way that the secrets were revealed slowly and carefully, because there are so damn many of them and they are at the root of this case. However, at heart this is a romantic suspense story. What Lily has to do is investigate a series of murders, and figure out who the serial killer is, with the help of other officers who just so happen to be family. Along the way she falls in love with her investigating partner, a man who should be off limits but isn't. Jolaj, the Ormney Law Keeper who works with Lily, is not just a fascinating character but everything we learn about the Ormney culture adds depth to him and his side of this story. Some of the more interesting aspects of the story were on Jolaj' side of the equationâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;how much to keep secret, how much his people should adapt and assimilate, how much they should keep themselves separate, apart and isolated. Jolaj finds himself caught in the middle. But it would have been relatively easy to remove the science fictional elements of this story and still have an interesting tale of romantic suspense. Especially when we discover that the villain is a peculiarly human

kind of murdererâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;a psychopath who has been practising his technique for every bit as long as the Ormney have been on Earth. They aren't his real target, they are just an excuse for more and bloodier killings. I will confess that I was lured by the red herring, and didn't figure out who the real killer was until the protagonists did. Being along for the ride kept me flipping pages fast until the very end.

Desire Disguised: Love Under A New Moon, Book 2 (Lynn Rae) Review by SFF Dragon (An ARC was given to me by Science Fiction Romance Quarterly) Desire Disguised is a third-person novel set in "outer space" with an indeterminate time period, specifying neither a date or whether it is the future or past as we would measure time on Earth, and featuring a sister and her much younger brother who have crashed on a strange planet after spending years on the run from assassins. The blurb: Cara Belasco's secrets have chased her across the galaxy, but when her ship crashes on an isolated planet, she discovers a man who could become her perfect refuge â&#x20AC;&#x201D; if she'll let him. Action, adventure, and sizzling romance will keep you turning the pages of Desire Disguised, Book 2 of Lynn Rae's exciting sci-fi series, Love Under a New Star. Cara Belasco has been on the run from assassins since childhood. Living in the shadows with her younger brother and one elderly guardian, her luck nearly runs out when the smuggler's ship carrying them crashes into a soggy jungle planet. Ben Zashi, the stalwart head of security who rescued her from the wreckage, is very curious about her cover story, and Cara has to fend off his inquires as well as her escalating attraction for him. Will the secrets she's been hiding come between them, or can Cara allow herself to find passion with the one man who longs to protect her? Content Notes: Spicy, Science Fiction, Action, Adventure, Suspense Review:

This is the first book I've read by this author and, having read the blurb, I was anticipating that Desire Disguised, the second book in the Love Under A New Star series by Lynn Rae, would be packed with hot love scenes, risky situations and action with wall-to-wall assassins hunting down Cara Belasco, her ten year-old brother, Mat, and their companion, Soren, and that Ben Zashi would be up to his eyeballs fighting them off whilst he tried to keep the three of them safe. This impression is quite far from the actual story. It is very definitely Science Fiction, and has some suspense along the "will they be found" type of line, and there was a love scene or two between the very innocent Cara and Chief of Safety and Security, Ben, but nothing that could be called adventure, unless you count going to school or work, which were brandnew experiences for Mat and Cara respectively. The only action is at the end of the book and lasts all of five minutes. There are some things I was expecting that never materialised. There wasn't an assassin in sight, and the last time they were found, one of their two remaining companions was killed, and they had to run again. This all happened two years before they crashed on Gamaliel and found themselves taken to Pearl, the somewhat small and only town on the planet. Most of the panic and need to run and hide seemed to be generated by the remaining companion, Soren, who spent most of the book in a coma because of injuries he sustained in the crash. Ben was only curious about their cover story because they

refused to allow their blood to be taken for DNA printing and be put on public record. As I read, and the story of Cara's and Mat's short, lonely and miserable lives unfolded, it became apparent that the book is primarily a Sci-Fi Romance with a happy ending, at least for now. This is not a cliff-hanger but uncertainty about the future, and possible discovery by the assassins, is still there. The book concentrates mainly on Cara's fear of being found again and her growing trust inâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and feelings forâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ben, and his for her, as both she and Mat discover what their lives could be like if they were able to actually live them. When they were forced to flee from their home planet, Cara was about ten years old, although her current age is never given. Until that moment, she had lived her life in two rooms, with occasional visits to a garden. Mat was a baby she met for the first time on the day they fled, so neither had any idea what a normal life could be like, and this story is more about their voyage of discovery than anything else. I really enjoyed reading this book and generally liked the interaction between almost all of the characters. Even if they only passed briefly through the story, each gave something which was useful, especially to Cara in terms of a woman's perspective which she desperately needed. Others gave something to Mat that he could enjoy and get excited about. I really didn't like the nosey trouble-maker, Myltin Tarl, who seems to be looking for some kind of vicarious revenge and decides the newcomers will pay the price for crimes they never committed against him in the first place. He is the worst kind of busybody who thinks innocent children should be made to pay for the crimes of their parents, even if there is no proof that the children are even related to the perpetrators. I think telling him long ago to mind his own business, stop interfering in things which have nothing to do with him and get a life would have been better than trying to not hurt his feelings and pandering to his over-inflated ego. On the whole, this was a well-written and very enjoyable read, although not quite the action-packed book that was promised. I still liked it enough to want to read more by this author. I've given this book a rating of three and half stars out of five. It was a very good book, but not the book you think you're getting when you read the blurb.

Farewell Andromeda (Laurie A. Green) Review by Psyche Skinner

Farewell Andromeda is a delightful novella with a few shortcomings that bothered me more, the more I thought about them. Like many shorter works, it is more of a scenario that is set up and resolved than a story with a beginning, middle and end. It is, however, a fairly interesting scenario. Green takes the usual boy finds girl, boy rescues girl, boy and girl are happy together situation and semi-genderflips it. We have a tough spaceship captain, Tiharra, who falls for intriguing Donner, only to find he is destined to die in a matter of days (that might count as a spoiler, if it was not already in the blurb). What I liked was the confident world-building with a minimum of exposition, and a scenario where the female is the somewhat more confident of the two. The secondary characters have real presence despite appearing only briefly, and the futuristic technology, while in a classic space opera mold, has many novel elements rather than being the usual Star Trek clone. That said, the story is seriously rushed at the end, as if it was designed to be 10,000 words longer but the author suddenly lost interest. Even the heroine's abiding neurotic thoughts about a previous breakup are simply tied up in one sentence (where Previous Bad Boyfriend is finally written off for doing something Future Wonderful Boyfriend promptly does, but now it is okay for some reason).

Essentially, the swapping of classic gender roles is not complete as the female character is not ultimately the one who saves the day, and not the one who maintains their planned trajectory through life only with a new life-partner sidekick.

Phoenix Inheritance (Corinna Lawson) Review by Marlene Harris

Back in Issue 5 of Sci-Fi Romance Quarterly I reviewed Corrina Lawson's entire Phoenix Institute series to date. Because I can't leave a job unfinished (and we love you for it, M! --Ed), and because I wanted to read the rest of the story, I'm back with a review of the final book in the series, Phoenix Inheritance. When last we left our heroes...no that's not quite right. Daz Montoya has been part of the main sequence of The Phoenix Institute (Phoenix Rising, Phoenix Legacy, Ghost Phoenix) from the very beginning. But Daz doesn't have any superpowers of his own. Daz was hired by the late and completely unlamented Lansing to both babysit firestarting telekinetic Alex and help Alex become the leader of a paramilitary team. When Alex finally rebels against his psychopathic foster father in Phoenix Rising, Daz follows the kid he has trained, and leaves Lansing in their burning dust. As Alex has taken over the Institute, Daz has continued to lead the team. But in Ghost Phoenix, Daz discovered just how difficult and deadly it can be to be the human pinball in a contest between two supersâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and Daz has the handshaped burn scar to prove it. Daz is used to being the biggest and baddest thing out there, and he's having a damn hard time figuring out how to "level up" in a world where he is just a vulnerable human and his opponents can read his mind, control his body, or set him on fire with a thought. And when they heal in an instant, and he definitely doesn't. Daz has another big adjustment to make. While he was still a Navy SEAL, he very unofficially participated in the rescue of a downed plane filled with medical supplies and personnel headed for a refugee aid station. As part of this off-the-books search and rescue mission, he met Renee Black and her beautiful SAR dogs Thor and Loki. The affair between Renee and Daz burned hot, and produced a child. But Daz couldn't make the right words come out of his mouth to tell Renee he loved her, and Renee has Charlie without him. Even though Daz continues to meet his obligations where Renee and Charlie are concerned, he's not the 24/7 parent that Renee is forced to be. Daz is a part of Charlie's life, but 2 weekends a month are not enough for him to absorb, or even accept, that his eight-year-old's autism is real and that keeping Charlie mostly on track is wearing Renee down. No one can be on watch 24/7 and not reach burnout. Until a freak snowstorm and a feral cat conspire to get Daz back in Renee and Charlie's lives long enough for a whole bunch of home truths to finally sink into his skull. It takes a whole host of crises to finally get Daz to accept Charlie exactly for who he is, and for him to figure out that in order for him to have a place in Renee's life, he has to accept her as a full partner, and not someone he holds at arm's reach. And that Batman still has a place in the Justice League, even though he doesn't have any superpowers of his own. Escape Rating B: As much as I enjoyed Phoenix Inheritance, it felt like a story in the

middle, and it leaves a lot of loose ends dangling regarding the Institute that I hope get picked up, and wrapped up, in a later book that does not currently seem to be on the drawing board. The story between Renee and Daz also has a feeling of being "in the middle" because so much of their story, the mission where they met, is told in flashbacks that interrupt the story in the present. I found those flashbacks informative but a bit jarring. I was invested in the story in the present and felt like I was getting enough information about how they started that I didn't need to see all the detailsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;I was much more interested in how they were going to resolve their current problems. Which are, admittedly, huge. The biggest thing is that Daz keeps treating Renee as someone he needs to protect, instead of as someone who is right in there with him. He hasn't let her into his life. And this is crucial, because Charlie says that animals talk to him telepathically, not that he uses that term. Renee believes Charlie is imagining what he wants to hear because he has a very powerful and inventive imagination. She doesn't know that telepathy is real, but Daz does and doesn't share that information. Charlie's potential telepathy puts him in danger from the same forces that are targeting the Phoenix Institute, and Daz doesn't do a proper threat assessment because he just doesn't want to admit that his son is autistic. Of course, there is evil afoot, and that evil is after Charlie, just as they are after everyone connected with the Phoenix Institute. I feel so sorry for the poor cat that they use as both bait and trap, and I'm glad that Odin finds a much better home with Charlieâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;who really does understand him. The issues that remained from Ghost Phoenix, that Rasputin and his gang of extra-fanatic crazies are after Alex and anyone connected with the Institute, are not resolved at the end of Phoenix Inheritance. While they managed to neutralize his local representative, that presence also made it apparent that there are plenty of tentacles left on this particular monster. So the story ends with everyone currently safe, but with the sure and certain knowledge that evil is still out there and still has them in its sights. So even though the romance between Daz and Renee has reached a lovely Happy For Now, a happy ever after seems far outside everyone's control. I hope we find out how they neutralize Rasputin one of these days. This series deserves a fitting and final wrap.

Starblind (D.T. Dyllin) Review by Jo Jones

Starblind is filled with interesting characters set is a world where Earth is gone and humans are not the top of the food chain. Jane, our space ship captain, is half human and half unknown. Her crew members are all from different races. She owns her ship and she and her crew make their living as bounty hunters. Sometimes getting the bounty is easy and sometimes it is not. This time it is not easy and that leads to mystery, tension, danger and romance. Jane is entertaining. She has both great external dialogs with her crew and others and a lot of internal with herself. While she is witty and fun to listen to what she is not, is a good captain. She was just too whiney. The other characters on her ship were not that well developed. They each had one main characteristic and their main job was to keep Jane on track.

Ash is an interesting well-developed character. His actions are often unexpected and he keeps Jane and everyone else guessing. Jane often leaps without looking and when she takes a job to capture Ash she finds she is in a no-win situation. Ash is much more than she suspected and, to make it even more difficult, she is attracted to him from the start. Sex with Ash just gets her into more trouble. I had mixed feelings about Starblind. The story is fast paced and tension filled. Back-story is important and is worked into the plot as needed. The same is true for world building. The development of secondary characters was very one-dimensional and left me wanting more. Jane and her personality rubbed me wrong for most of the story. I hope she is more of a captain and less of a whiner in future stories. I liked Ash. His actions kept the story moving. Since this is the start of the series some things are solved and some are left hanging. Jane, Ash and the crew will be back for further adventures.

Stealing Mercury: Arena Dogs #1 (Charlee Allden) Review by The Book Pushers Publisher: Charlee Allden Publish Date: March 2015 Reviewed by: E How I got this book: ARC from SFR Quarterly Born a slave, Mercury is an Arena Dog, genetically engineered to fight and die in the Arena for the entertainment of others. Trained as a gladiator from boyhood in a violent world, where men must form alliances and share what little bounty they have to survive, his only goal has been to keep his men alive. But two are dead and the rest are condemned to be hunted down and killed for sport. Worse, their demise will leave a woman Mercury has sworn to protect, alone and vulnerable. And then there is Samantha—a courageous human he has no right to claim. But she is his. He feels it deep in his soul and with an ache in his body he can't deny. Samantha Devlin is an indie-freight pilot who has lost everything: her ship, her crew, and her father. When an old friend hires her as an emergency replacement to pilot a cargo carrier for the Roma Company, she's shocked to learn her cargo is three, living, breathing, and dangerously sexy Arena Dogs. When Samantha learns she's taking the men to their deaths, she must decide if she is willing to risking everything for a man whose customs require that he share her with one of his men and demands he return to Roma to protect another woman. Mercury, their leader, and Lo, his emotionally broken arena-brother, challenge all her notions of honor, loyalty, and love. Her heart tells her Mercury is worth any cost, but her head sees nothing ahead but disaster. (This blurb came from Goodreads)

When I was browsing the different SFR stories up for review for this quarters ment, Stealing Mercury looked like it had several different elements I have enjoyed in the past—genetic engineering, gladiators, evil corporation, woman pilot with a questionable past—so I requested it. Stealing MercuryÂ had its ups and downs for me as Allden tried to get me invested in Mercury and Samantha's struggles as well as worldbuilding with partial success. I felt as if this story really had two distinct parts. The first part of the story did allow me to get to know the Arena Dogs, Samantha, and their overall

opponent. I felt for the Arena Dogs and liked Samantha's spirit most of the time but on several occasions I really wondered what in the world Samantha was thinking when she did something she knew would provoke the villains or prevented Mercury from permanently eliminating the villains. The pacing in the first half was rather slow, which made me think more could have been shown on-screen between Samantha and the Arena Dogs instead of spotlighting negative encounters with their "handlers". I did appreciate the time between initial meeting and the start of physical intimacy but I wish I had seen more of Samantha gaining the trust of the Arena Dogs instead of being told she had a habit of spending time with them after trust had been established. As a result, while I could buy the physical sexual attraction, I had some issues with the depth of emotional attachment. The second part of the book is where the pace drastically increased and yet I felt as if Allden started several new threads while picking up one left undeveloped for much of the story and completely leaving out another initiated in the beginning. While the overall focus remained on trying to rescue some of the Arena Dogs still under Roma Company's control, I was distracted by the multitude of subplots which appeared. Any one of those subplots would have been fascinating to follow but none of them were closed out in this particular installment so I am guessing they will come up again as this series continues. Stealing Mercury was a story with a lot of promise but an uneven execution. Allden started several intriguing threads but really didn't bring any of them to a conclusion while meandering towards a rescue attempt back at the Arena. Allden did create a vast universe full of different species, politics, technology, and some undiscovered mystery, so there is plenty to explore. I just hope succeeding books have smoother pacing and a tighter focus. I give Stealing Mercury a C.

The Time Slip Girl (Elizabeth Andre) Review by Rachel Cotterill

Dara falls down the stairs in 2014 and wakes up in 1908. Agnes is surprised to find a mysterious, darkskinned woman in her basement, but she's a practical sort and takes it all in stride, even when it transpires that her visitor is from the future. As the two women share a bedâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and increasingly begin to share their livesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;it becomes clear that a century's time difference is no barrier to love. I think it's important for anyone picking up this book to understand that Andre is a romance novelist: this is a romance novel with a time travel conceit, rather than a book about time travel. Concepts such as paradoxes and changing history are nodded at, but not addressedâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the present-day protagonist, Dara, is very genre-savvy, and even Agnes in 1908 reads The Time Machine for research, but neither woman really understands how the time slips work. There's a mad Edwardian scientist who has a theory, and some steampunk-esque devices that allow him to measure the atmospheric changes associated with the slips; his method is shown to have some predictive power, but that's as far as it goes. The historical detail, on the other hand, is beautifully done. Most of the story takes place in 1908, and there are various little touches that really bring the setting to life. A quick fact-check confirms that the author is spot on about everything from the availability of aspirin to the pieces performed at Prom 24. Dara naturally finds life in the early 20th century quite different to 21st century Chicago, and this new world is not without its challenges, particularly for a black lesbian. Back home she's been out for years, and was engaged to her girlfriend, until Jenny was killed in a tragic accident. In 1908 she's already a novelty for her

skin colour and, although she shows photos of Jenny to Agnes, she shies away from explaining the nature of their relationship. And at a variety show, the offensive minstrel act sends her running from the theatre. For her part, Agnes got into trouble with her father after he caught her kissing a girl, and although her parents have since died, she hasn't had another partner. She falls quickly in love with Dara, but she's too afraid of losing her friend to confess her feelings. Overall, I really enjoyed this book, despite the lightweight treatment of the science and the occasional line of clunky dialogue. Agnes and Dara were perfect together, and I enjoyed the way they were challenged by their different backgrounds and the unusual circumstances in which they met.

The Trader: Man With No Face (RK Mann) Review by RK Shiraishi (This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.) Summary

THE TRADER: MAN WITH NO FACE is a SF novel with romantic elements. It focuses on the plight of a (humanoid?) trader, a Patusian, who is captured and disfigured to the point of only having gaping holes for a mouth and nose. He is also being hunted as food for a group of aliens called the Kin. Grim. Definitely. And the trader has gained the power of telepathy. Surprise! Maranth, the heroine, is a cultured, educated woman from a planet called Veddi which sees itself as more civilized than the rest of the galaxy. She is currently sent to work as a medical volunteer on a mining colony with her robot companion, Doc, a character I really grew to like. The Maranth-robot relationship makes for an exciting adventure pair. The colony is attacked and she is taken prisoner-forced into indentured servitude to use her medical talents for a people known as the Afthari. Maranth is a complex character-she is very well educated, yet naive. All of her life she has been sheltered from violence, or deprivation, explicit sexuality (or any sexuality). She has a hard time grasping the realities of other's desperation and poverty; sometimes with a condescending sense of doo-gooder-ness. Her capture and enslavement wake her up to a world that isn't fair or protected. Yet, despite her naivete, she has a fundamental kindness which leads her to have compassion for the Patusian when others only view him as grotesque. This leads into a more complicated plot about the nature of the Kin aliens as well as Maranth's society. Review: So I only gave the bare bones of the characters and plot. This story is space opera, meaning there are lots of aliens and lots of worlds and plenty of action. I thought RK Mann did a fine job of developing truly unique planets and technologies. As mentioned, the medical robot was in itself almost book worthy. Another notable plus is that RK Mann doesn't shy away from presenting the realities of grinding poverty. A lot of SF and SFR I read tends to avoid the issue of poverty ('cause in the future everyone's equal) or makes it into a dystopian adventure. People in RK Mann's world are poor amid wealth窶馬ot because of zombie invasion or alien attack but by the human vices of greed and violence. RK Mann presents rich, developed worlds and doesn't try to make them all pretty. I liked this book much more than I expected to. The title was a bit cumbersome and the blurb did not stand out, so it wasn't one I immediately took notice of. Yet, some word of mouth on Goodreads made me

take a second look and I was glad I did. It doesn't always do to judge a book by its cover. And this one surprised me in a good way. It is not a perfect book, the POV took some getting used to at times and the commitment to detail makes for some long, descriptive passages. The initial introduction of the trader and the aliens who hunt him can be jarring and frightening. This is not a light beach read. Still, it holds together. Reservationsâ&#x20AC;Śmainly concerned the romantic plot. Although I liked both the characters a great deal, it may not be the HEA development that most romantic readers expect. Sweet heat level, which is fine, but the emotional ups and downs relationship-wise are not as prominent. This is SF with a nice dab of a love story, but for those Romance readers with a capital R, it may not suit. I found it a decent read with some interesting characters and ideas. Content warning: there is a scene of sexual assault and attempted rape.

Unchained Memory: Interstellar Rescue #1 (Donna S. Frelick) Review by Weirde

In the world of sci-fi books, alien abductions are an evergreen theme. We could say they are almost the beginning of the genre in all its forms, and the potential of a story about a normal life and a normal human who suddenly is swept away from his or her roots, maybe toward an alien love and an happy-ever-after, has always had an irresistible appeal to the reader. I, for example, love this type of book, and Unchained Memory is an example of this category. That's why I chose to read it, little knowing that I was in for a big surprise! In Unchained Memory, author Donna S. Frelick takes a basilar theme like alien abduction but turns it around beyond recognition. The reader is not sure there's been an alien abduction till the middle of the book, and even then it's not a certainty. We have a woman, Asia, who has lost three hours of her life. She can't remember what happened to her during that time. The only thing she knows it's that something must have happened. And then there are the dreamsâ&#x20AC;Ś. She can't sleep, but she can't properly remember her nightmares. The meeting with Ethan Roberts, a psychiatrist who treats people who believe to have been abducted by the aliens, will be the turning point of her life. She doesn't believe that aliens were the cause of her lost time, she has no preconceptions, only a great void and the fear of being crazy. Ethan will be able to make her remember her dreams finally, and the situation that emerges will be a surprise for both of them because (*spoiler*) it seems that, for months, she was actually a labor slave on an alien planet. As you can see, this mystery about memory loss, and the clear intent of the author to not speak clearly about aliens till the middle of the book is similar to the approach of the TV series, The X-Files, about aliens. This is a method I call "says, but at the same time doesn't say". In the series, we were never sure about Scully's abduction. While it was clear that the only possible explanation for what happened to her was an alien abduction, we were never given incontrovertible proof of that. The same is with Asia in Unchained Memory. We are never sure, till the end, about the involvement of aliens and even then they are not so central to the story. We don't even know what they look like. There is just vague talk about "gray men". I think it was very effective keeping the reader in the dark like this. It created a certain charm about the story. However, there is a problem. If you keep her (the reader) too much in the dark, she can lose interest

and, I'm sorry to say, in this case, the waiting to shed clear light on the aliens was too long. When I read a sci-fi, I want aliens. Stop. Not a long psychological journey. :) Also, the relationship bothered me. Asia and Ethan are hot for each other from the first time they see each other, without any apparent cause. She is beautiful, he is handsome, and they want to have sex. It doesn't work for me. A woman with a past like that of Asia, who not only lost three hours of her life, but also her three children in a terrible fire, and who lives in a constant state of guilt, can't just decide to immediately trust someone like Ethan. It's not plausible. And, to me, the love story between them seemed both out-ofplace and forced. There was too much sensuality without much depth, is how it seemed to me. Instead of writing pages about their sex life and their mutual attraction, I would have loved more pages about the dreams of Asia, her life as a slave, and so on. If I were a woman who finally, after years in the dark, now has a clear enough idea of what happened to her, I would want to explore my memories every waking moment, to discover more and more. Not play the doctor with my doctor! The aliens, the alien world, the slavery, the alliance, and the humans that rescued the slaves, are themes that I would have like to have read more about. Unfortunately, they only occupy a secondary place in this book, so much so that I don't even know if Unchained Memory can be considered sci-fi. Book Two of this series, Trouble in Mind, is due out in Fall, 2015. And I hope that, this time, the authorâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;now that the alien abductions are a fact, like human slaves on other planetsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;will tell us more about them, and build a more interesting world for the reader to explore.

Carmen Dog (Carol Emshwiller) From SF Mistressworks—this issue's review is courtesy of Paul Kincaid In 1922 the young David Garnett published his first novel, a brief fable called Lady into Fox. It tells the story of Silvia Tebrick, who one day suddenly turns into a vixen, and of her husband, Richard Tebrick, who tries to protect his newly wild spouse until she is eventually killed by the hunt. This was far from being the first work to feature humans transformed into animals. Think of Ovid’s Metamorphoses or, indeed, Franz Kafka’s novella, The Metamorphosis, which had appeared, in German, as recently as 1915. But Garnett’s novel was perhaps the first in which we are required to pay attention to the gender of the transformee. Though our attention is more on Richard than Silvia, we might read her increasing wildness as reflecting the increasing independence espoused by the suffragist movement, and the climax suggesting how society, represented by the hunt, crushes women. However we read Garnett’s novel, though, one thing is clear, his central conceit of representing the role of woman by changing her into an animal has become almost a commonplace of later, particularly feminist, science fiction. We still see some iteration of this today in the work of writers such as Kij Johnson, but probably the most extravagant, significant and certainly funniest expression of the trope was in another first novel, Carmen Dog by Carol Emshwiller. Emshwiller had been writing short stories since the 1950s, so the debut novel, published in 1988, was long delayed. Story titles like Sex And/Or Mr Morrison (from Harlan Ellison’s Dangerous Visions (1967)) gave notice that relations between the sexes would be a significant theme in her work. Still, nothing could have prepared us for the extraordinary satirical joie de vivre that is such a feature of Carmen Dog. Oh the satire is angry enough, but never bitter, and there is real elation in the inventive way Emshwiller plays with ideas all the way through the novel. There are no half measures in Carmen Dog: this is not the story of one woman transformed into an animal, but all women; while, reciprocally, animals change into women. The change has already begun as the novel opens, though it is not yet as widespread as it will become. Before we are even introduced to our heroine, we learn that: red-headed, plump Christine who had, several times, been taken for an orangutan, can now argue her way out of any zoo no matter what the educational level of the keepers. Mona, on the other hand, can almost fly (though it is unlikely that she ever really will). Her husband complains that she makes funny noises, but her children like her all the better for it. John is divorcing Lucille in order to marry Betty (quite bearish still, but evidently what John wants). Mabel has only recently been given a name at all. (p2)

That passage is actually a fair representation of Emshwiller’s style throughout the novel: brisk, allusive, kaleidoscopic, skimming across the surface of the change without going into too much unnecessary detail (do we need to know exactly what Mona is turning into, or what Mabel used to be?). The women (and animals) are named, though we will never meet any of them again; the men mostly aren’t. Men are titles, roles, “the psychologist”, “the husband”. They are stolid, unchanging, uninterested, and uninteresting; many of them seem to have little or no awareness of the extraordinary societal changes going on around them. Men are mostly the villains in this story as well, though that is not to impute a simplistic all-men-are-bad, all-women-

47 are-good attitude to the novel. The villainy stems mostly from incomprehension: we are in a whole world of the women men don’t see. Our heroine is Pooch, whose dogness remains as a rather endearing part of her character throughout the novel (though the name presumably says something about the unimaginativeness of the unnamed husband and wife who begin our story as her owners). The wife is turning into a vicious snapping turtle, the husband simply wants the smooth surface of his life to continue undisturbed, and Pooch, slowly becoming human, finds more domestic responsibilities falling upon her: taking care of the children, shopping, cleaning, and so on. She takes all this on out of an innate loyalty, or perhaps more precisely a desire to be loyal, that remains one of her abiding characteristics whatever else happens to her. When, eventually, she gets to see the psychologist (tellingly, all these transformations are seen only as psychological problems for the women) his perceptions are comically banal: It is clear that Pooch has always wanted to be of service to mankind in any way that she possibly could and from the general look of her, he would guess that her retrieving instincts are strong and that she might be passionately interested in swimming. (p4)

Apply those perceptions to a dog and they tell us only about what we humans have created through breeding and training; apply them to a woman . . . But such is the magic of Emshwiller’s work. Of course, we have no sooner met Pooch in her cosy but clearly unsatisfactory domestic situation, than she is forced to flee. What follows is a typical picaresque in which our innocent and unwary heroine faces the threats and temptations of the big bad city. These encounters allow us to witness the plight of womencreatures in this new reality, while Pooch, like picaresque heroines of old (Fanny Hill, say, or Justine), remains resolutely undepraved by the depravity she experiences. There is the city pound (equivalent of a gaol and treated as such), where she gives her collar to another dog in danger of being put down, so that it might prove it is owned and thus escape death. There is another version of a prison when she and her friends from the pound are held by the psychologist, who wants to conduct experiments on these new not-quite-people. Here Pooch learns to compose poetry (so we can see her as a civilized person, even if the psychologist cannot), and thrives in the community of her fellows (it is a commonplace in the feminist SF of the period that women are mutually supportive and act communally, while men are isolated and individualist). Given how much the dog part of her character still craves a master to whom she can be loyal, this situation would suit Pooch well were it not for the increasing use of pain in the psychologist’s experiments. Instead, she fights back, and escapes. The next part of this picaresque sees Pooch wandering the city alone, seeing an opera and discovering a desire to sing, then falling in with a libertine who also happens to be the opera impresario. Finally, she is drawn back to the psychologist’s home in the hope of rescuing her fellows, only to discover that the psychologist’s wife is actually the leader of a secret liberation movement. In other words, the choice facing our women-creatures has gone from one between ownership or death in the pound, to one between freedom or imprisonment now that they have taken control of their own future. It was a time when feminist SF tended to lay out its wares in bold, not to say garish, contrasts, and Emshwiller is not immune to that. But Emshwiller makes a virtue of the broad strokes, making it a part of the comedy of her novel. Big and foolish things happen, because that is precisely in the nature of such satires; but these big and foolish things are handled wittily, so that we find ourselves laughing at them and with them at the same time. We feel for Pooch as a sort of Everywoman as she makes her way through various misadventures, and we hiss at the pantomime villain men; but they are not entirely villainous, and there are good men discovered along the way, and the story has a happy ending because such stories need to have a happy ending.

48 Emshwillerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s novel is a curious mid-career debut, but there are first novel faults and she has become an even more sophisticated writer since then. None of that spoils the sheer exhilaration of this work. It remains one of the most striking and powerful examples of feminist SF. This review originally appeared on Strange Horizons and, later, on SF Mistressworks. It is reprinted here with the permission of the author. Advertisement

Science fiction romance and the Hugo awards Opinion from Cora Buhlert

Science fiction awards season is in full swing and so far, it has been one of the most debated on record due to the controversy surrounding the Hugo Awards. Just in case you have been living under a rock, two overlapping groups of rightwing writers and fans calling themselves Sad Puppies and Rabid Puppies respectively felt that the Hugos had gone stale and too far removed from what they believed to be the tastes of “real” science fiction fans. So they decided to do something about this by compiling two overlapping slates of candidates in close alignment with the Puppies' political orientation and personal taste and then persuading their followers to nominate these candidates. And because everybody can vote and nominate after purchasing a WorldCon supporting membership, the concerted efforts of the two Puppy campaigns flooded the Hugo ballot with their choices. This has made a lot of people very angry. A lot of pixels have already been spent debating this controversy—collected by the tireless Mike Glyer at File770 in his daily link round-ups—so I'm not going to talk about puppies, sad or otherwise. However, the debate surrounding the Hugos made me wonder how science fiction romance has fared in the awards so far. The answer is—unsurprisingly—not very well. In part, this is due to the well-documented antipathy of large swathes of science fiction fandom towards romance. Another factor is that many science fiction romances do not quite achieve the depth of worldbuilding craved by science fiction readers. Finally, the fact that science fiction romances are often published by romance imprints, small presses or selfpublished and thus never appear on the Hugo voters' radar plays a role as well. Nonetheless, there are some bright spots, since several science fiction works with strong romantic elements have been nominated for and even won the Hugo Award. Connie Willis, Joan D. Vinge, C.J. Cherryh and Anne McCaffrey are all multiple Hugo nominees and winners, while Andre Norton has been nominated twice, but did not win. Lois McMaster Bujold has won the Hugo Award five times, tying with Robert A. Heinlein for the most wins in the fiction categories. Though it is notable that A Civil Campaign, Bujold's most clearly romantic work, was nominated for a Hugo Award in 2000, but lost out to Vernor Vinge's decidedly unromantic A Deepness in the Sky. Looking beyond the fiction categories, Jacqueline Lichtenberg has been nominated for the best fan writer Hugo, but did not win. What is more, in 201 4 four nominees in the short fiction categories were stories that dealt with the subject of love, though none of them are romances in the strictest sense of the word. So romantic science fiction can and has triumphed at the Hugo Awards. The omissions are just as notable. For example, Sharon Lee and Steve Miller have never been nominated. And though Catherine Asaro has won the Nebula Award with The Compass Rose in 2001 (which according to Rabid Puppy leader Vox Day a.k.a. Theodore Beale marked the beginning of the downfall of that award) and then again in 2008 with the novella The Space-Time Pool, her name is conspicuously absent from the Hugo shortlists. Finally, let's take a look at some stunning science fiction romances from recent years, which were published by mainstream publishers and would have been worthy Hugo contenders, if they hadn't been overlooked by the electorate. The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook Steampunk doesn't normally fare too well at the Hugos, though there have been a handful of Steampunk novels nominated, such as Cherie Priest's Boneshaker in 201 0.

The Iron Duke, the first novel in Meljean Brook's Iron Seas series, came out the same year as Boneshaker and yet did not even make the extended nomination list. This is a pity because the Iron Seas series contains some excellent worldbuilding, plenty of engaging characters and fabulous adventures. The Iron Duke even features a biracial heroine and includes some commentary on the racism inherent in Victorian style yellow peril scenarios. Alas, the Iron Seas series is published by Berkley, a romance imprint, and therefore never registered on the radar of most Hugo voters. Ghost Planet by Sharon Lynn Fisher One of the Hugo nominated short stories this year is set on a planet where humans manifest as ghosts after death due to the peculiar physical characteristics of said planet. As I read the story in question, I realised that it reminded me of Ghost Planet by Sharon Lynn Fisher, only that Fisher handled a similar idea so much better and threw in an engaging romance as well. The Paradox trilogy by Rachel Bach I'm surprised that there wasn't more Hugo love for Fortune's Pawn, the first novel in this trilogy, last year. And though we won't know how the sequels Honour's Knight and Heaven's Queen fared until the extended nomination lists are published in September, I don't have much hope. This is a pity, because the Paradox trilogy has been one of my favourite science fiction works of the past two years along with the multiple award-winning Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie. After all, the trilogy has a fabulous heroine, a wonderful romance, great worldbuilding and enough action to satisfy even the saddest of puppies. But at the same time, the series is also a scathing critique of classic Campbellian science fiction, its hostility to romance and emotions in general and its tendency to sacrifice individuals, usually women and children, for some nebulous greater good. There are even some bonus swipes against the New Wave. In many ways, the Paradox trilogy is a response to genre classics such as Tom Godwin's The Cold Equations and Ursula K. LeGuin's The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas as well as an eloquent plea for a more inclusive genre that does not keep sacrificing women and children for the greater good. Now the science fiction romance genre already has its own awards with the SFR Galaxy Awards and the Prism Awards. But if you want to see more science fiction romance nominated for the Hugo Awards, what can you do? Well, that's simple, because for 40 US dollars you can purchase a WorldCon supporting membership, which includes voting rights for the current Hugo Awards and nominating rights for the current and following year.

Waiting for the machines to fall asleep (An anthology from Sweden, reviewed by KS Augustin)

As our Russian friends often say, the world is becoming multi-polar and I, personally, couldn't be happier. A world dominated by only one culture is a stultifying place, flensed of nuance, and our understanding of the human condition can only be improved by taking on board many cultures and perspectives, and discovering that the commonalities and differences between “us” and “them” can only add to the richness of our own life tapestries. It was with this in mind that I thought I would break a little with SFRQ tradition and review a speculative fiction anthology from Sweden, published by Affront Publishing. Owner of Affront and anthology editor, Peter Öberg had this to say when I asked him about the book and its publishing home. “I started Affront Publishing in 201 2 when no other publisher was willing to release a pet project of mine,” Peter says. “It was a non-fiction book about Nordic science fiction films. Since then I've edited four science fiction anthologies - three with the title “ Maskinblod” (" Machine Blood") and the fourth, an erotic collection titled “ Kärlek i maskinernas tid” (" Love in the Age ofMachines"). Unfortunately for your readers, all those anthologies were in Swedish.” What prompted Peter to produce a speculative anthology in English? “The market in Sweden is small, and many readers primarily read English language SF, but since the mainstream media don't understand the genre, they rarely write about it. I was interested in reaching a larger audience, so I asked around for authors who were interested in contributing stories in English. “I finally collected twenty-six stories representing modern day Swedish SF, with some forays into horror, steampunk and urban fantasy. To make sure the quality of the language is up to the standards a native English speaker might expect, several American beta readers have been involved. You'll also note that of the twenty-six authors, thirteen are female and thirteen male.” Gender equality, a truly cross-genre set of offerings and different cultural perspectives? How could I resist? Let's dig in. “Melody of the Yellow Bard” by Hans Olsson is a first-person story about Rasmus Ekblad, an extremely gifted physics student who is invited to a mysterious island by an equally mysterious man called Clayton. When Rasmus sees what Clayton and the head of the institute have to show him, he realises that he must rewrite the entire framework in which he has been living. This story has a tried-and-true plot, a young man (from his thinking and mannerisms, I imagined a highly functioning person suffering from autism spectrum disorder) is wooed by a secretive institute investigating otherwordly objects and those worlds themselves. While the plot is solid and intriguing, it is brought down by occasional info-dumps that interrrupt the dialogue flow. And the characters remain flat throughout. While that was perfectly understandable for Rasmus, it grated with others who could only “smile”, “smirk” or remark on something in an avancular manner. The accompanying “redshirts” die, of course. Having said that, the issues I have with this story are easily rectified, and only serve to momentarily distract from the central premise of wormholes and the incomprehensible wonder—and danger—of beholding worlds beyond ours. I do have to ask, though: why is it, whenever several people are running away, it's always the woman who stumbles and falls? Sigh. Despite these niggles and the marked resemblance to the TV series Stargate, I give the story a C. “The Rats” by Boel Bermann describes the attitude of a scientific researcher towards the animals he experiments on. But his attitude of empathy and emotion is actually a virus transmitted by the rats themselves, a clear liability as the country faces an epidemic of fatal proportions. How can a person who

understands the society of the rats be effective in a position that requires their eradication? I liked this story a lot, especially as I know of someone who did, indeed, give up research work when she saw how rats would attempt to shield the one that was due to be experimented on. Matching the urgency of the story, the language used is direct and powerful and it isn't difficult to imagine the panic of the authorities, the fear sweeping the population, and the way our researcher narrator is pulled in several different directions. The researcher's final act is satisfying and surprising, only let down by the thought that I have previously read many stories of this ilk. Despite that, I have no hesitation in giving this story an B+. We have our third first-person tale in “Getting to the End” by Erik Odeldahl, when a “finder” gets a job from a beautiful, mysterious woman to retrieve something very valuable from an old house in the dreaded “Event Sector”. To me, the story resembles a cross between Sam Spade and the Strugatsky brothers' “Roadside Picnic” where the aliens (the “visitors”) never left. The prose stumbles only in a few places, and is delightfully tight and evocative, moving from noir to a ghostly post-apocalyptic vista and on to cyberpunk with barely a glitch. There are so many images here, so many threads, so much atmosphere that Odeldah could have easily built an entire novel from this story's premise. I hope he does. Easily the equal of “Finch” by Jeff Van Dermeer (which was a bit disappointing at the end), I rate “Getting to the End” an A. It's a world of rich, powerful elites and two young women desperate to gain entry where Ingrid Remvall has set her story, “Vegatropolis – City of the Beautiful”. But the elites aren't humans. They're AAIGPs, Advanced Artificial Intelligence Goes Perfect, and the world is full of body tech, personalised projection billboards, and holographic musical instruments, freely available to the rich, but out of reach to poor, working-class humans. It's nice to read some YA sci-fi and I found the vision of this society compelling. The story starts with Vega, a young woman, gate-crashing a party with her friend, Maxine, and ends when Vega realises that even she, a mere human, has something to offer the magical AAIGPs. But no, it doesn't conclude happily, if that's what you're wondering. A solid B. We finally begin moving away from first-person narratives with “Jump to the Left, Jump to the Right” by Love Kölle. A spaceship crash-lands on a planet, and all the adults are killed. The surviving children are guided by the ship's computer, called the Holopedia and, over generations, the relationship between computer and descendants develops into an initiation ritual. Norna is the reluctant initiate of the story, whose time has come to be “Passed” and take her place in Nuhome. But, in order to do so, she must confront Holopedia, find meaning in its words and defeat Beast. The rite-of-passage is a common plot in SF, particularly in far future post-apocalyptic worlds. In the same way, although set on an alien planet, the atmosphere of “Jump to the Left, Jump to the Right” is reminiscent of Anthony Burgess' “Hothouse”, but with humour, optimism, and a plucky young heroine. I give “Jump to the Left, Jump to the Right” a B-. If you've ever seen those giant rubbish dumps in Pakistan, children scurrying over them as they try to locate anything worth a few cents, then the setting of “The Order of Things” by Lupina Ojala will be familiar to you. Outside the city walls, the trash from the city's inhabitants forms the only largesse to communities of Outskirters, scavenging for clothing, machines and food. Ida's son has left his community, looking for a better life, and she is left in ironically-named Serenity to worry and eke out a living as best she can. But Ida has a past that's different to the rest of Serenity's inhabitants. She was originally part of the city on the other side of those walls, and an accident involving her only son won't let her forget that. “The Order of Things” is a complex tale. Too complex for its length. The world is bigger than a short story will allow for, and decisions are made without the weight of conviction backing them up. When it comes to events, this can be excused, but not when it comes to emotions. And will someone please remember that

“discretely” and “discreetly” mean two completely different things. I wanted to empathise with Ida's many dilemmas, but felt kept at arms' length to the proceedings. Still, the story is well-written and I hope Ojala will work with a tighter focus next time. I give this story a C+. We're back to first-person with “To Preserve Humanity” by Christina Nordlander. The narrator is a robot that acts as a house-servant. Another robot, Dom-521 4, had subversive ideas after getting a kick to the processor and, before it became inoperational, it passed those ideas to our narrator robot, who decides to suggest executing on them. Again, as with “”The Order of Things”, there's a shorthand here that interferes with painting a complete picture of the world. I like the direct logic of the robot, but wanted to know more about how the robotic society is structured. Why do the Physicians seem to have more autonomy than the Maids? There's an implicit assumption of class here (and with robots!) that I'm not sure I'm comfortable with. I've picked up another problem that also occurs in one of the other stories: it's “two-storey”, not “two-story”...unless the house tells tales, of course. I give it a C+. “The Thirteenth Tower” by Pia Lindestrand suggests that a future Earth will be a water world, peopled by Bird-eaters, the more unfortunate fish-eaters and the lucky few who have hoarded soil on the Big Boats and so can eat plants. Our protagonist and her sister own a little boat. It is their home and their refuge, but a potential meal turns out to be a mechanical device from long ago, and it tells the sisters of a time when people walked on dry land, in a city called Prague. The imagery is enchanting in this story, enough to lift it above some glitches, but it would have soared with a heavier editorial hand. I would call this story science fantasy, because the background of the Deluge is never explained, as it fits with the imagery and the strangely informative feathered toy. I give it a B-. We move to steampunk with “Punch Card Horses” by Jonas Larsson, and poor Lage. He has only come to market to get a replacement ox, but fate has other ideas and, before he knows it, he has bought himself a contrivance instead. And, in order to master one new mechanical device, he needs to purchase another. And another. And another again. All at a cheery discount, of course, as the salesman keeps telling him. The market town (Skrivsjö) keeps changing and progressing as well. It's all a little too much for Lage to cope with. I liked the sly humour of this piece and, as a person who personally upgrades components of her own machines (and constantly gets told that the parts she's after are now either “unavailable” or “obsolete”), could relate to Lage and his ongoing problems. Even the macabre ending made me smile. This story gets a wholly emotional rating of Afor me. Many years ago, I read that the first Harry Potter book had to be renamed “The Sorcerer's Stone” because North American readers didn't know what a “Philosopher's Stone” was. A mainstay of alchemy, the Philosopher's Stone was reputed to be an object that, as a catalyst, would enable the transmutation from a base metal (such as lead) to gold. And so we're introduced to “The Philosopher's Stone” by Tora Greve. In the drawing-room of Sir Robert Boyle, a group of prominent scientists, also intensely interested in mysticism, discuss their own transmutation experiments and how they need the Stone in order to turn mercury to gold. In actual fact, alchemists didn't try to change mercury into gold, but used mercury compounds as a possible intermediate step (and leading candidate for a Philosopher's Stone) in order to change other metals into gold. However, the spiritual dedication demanded of alchemists is correct. There's a little too much showing and not enough doing in this otherwise interesting story that combines

science, metaphysics and aliens. There are sparks there that could've burst into flame, but it didn't happen. Again, some tighter editing wouldn't have gone astray. Some scenes were quite choppy and seemed forced, rather than flowing naturally. There were also some interesting word choices: “Barrow repented that he had chosen the open vehicle”, “A true alchemist must resolve himself up wholly to it”, “It struck Barrow that their adversity against each other had ceased...” I rate it a C. Player 3 is determined to win the annual gaming tournament of the Norsborg General Gaming Club, and get all the privileges of being Club Secretary, in “A Sense of Foul Play” by Andrew Coulthard. But the game is being put together by an untried AI Mind, and it has its own agenda. Coulthard tries for a fully-realised world in this tale, but doesn't quite hit the mark. The motivation for being Club Secretary, for example, felt tacked on, rather than an intrinsic drive on the part of Player 3. It could have been left out without affecting the story at all which, I suspect, was not intended. Despite this, I liked this take on cyberpunk horror and rate it a C+. “Waste of Time” by Alexandra Nero takes a figure of speech and turns it round completely as it describes the transfer of timewaste by robots who've missed a few service calls. I wish I could call this a short story but it has more of a feel of a vignette, a snapshot that hints at a deeper story but doesn't attempt to go there. I wish it had. C+. Johannes Pinter decides to go for a psycho-thriller vibe in “The Damien Factor”. A therapist, Kirkegaard (ha!), and ex-cop, Lucas, delve into a young girl's subconscious in order to find the truth in a criminal sex abuse case. It's not a pretty topic and Pinter doesn't spare the reader as he uses our curiosity to draw us in, much as the villain of the piece has done. There are small, yet satisfying, hints of the larger world outside the laboratory, and the story is well-crafted, except for one thing. I have noticed in this anthology a common eccentricity. Rather than relating events as A-B-C, we get A-C + flashback to B. This ploy can work but, in my opinion, most of the time all it ends up doing is disconcert the reader and slow any action to a crawl. In a story like “The Damien Factor” that is the last thing that's needed and an unfortunate tactic to take. The story's tension suffers as a result. B- from me. “Wishmaster” by Andrea Grave-Müller is a nice change of pace from the preceding grimness, opening with a goblin clinging to the back of a garbage truck. Post-divorce I T Support worker and human, Marcus Jensen, takes pity on goblin, Ella, and—when they meet again—he shelters her at his home. Ella has stolen something and wants to return it, but that's easier said than done. Marcus is pining for a beautiful co-worker and wants her to at least acknowledge his existence, but that's easier said than done, too. And the owner of the stolen item is desperate to get her possession back. All three get what they what. In a way. An entertaining urban fantasy, I'd revisit Müller's universe anytime, even though I don't consider myself much of a fantasy fan. A solid B. “Quadrillennium” by AR Yngve is a story of a post-human celebration of the Winter Solstice, complete with crucified Saviour. It is the story of what happens when, with the best of intentions, one obeys the letter of the law rather than the spirit. The story is humorous and sly, improving on a re-read, and I give it a B. We're in MilSF territory with “Mission Accomplished” by My Bergström, with a lone soldier tasked with evacuating as many civilians from a lunar base as she can after a sudden enemy attack. Much SFR is MilSFbased, so I've probably reached saturation with this sub-genre, but it will no doubt satisfy readers eager for more. B-. “The Road” by Anders Blixt follows the path of a marshal tasked with keeping the peace along a trading route that stretches from the coast up into the highlands. The marshal has been mutilated from a botched campaign she undertook in the past, and there's much to admire in her calm and stoicism. But her sense of equanimity cracks when she confronts a fleeing member of the Forsaken. This story kept changing voices, from the arcane that always seems to get used in fantasy stories (“The Ekklesia has appointed Brod shrineshepherd in Teritha and I'm his acolyte” or “The breach of his celibacy vow is a disciplinary matter...and of no

concern to me”) to a more contemporary cadence (“It's more complicated than you think” or“...for them you're just another weird foreigner”). This is a pity, as the story itself is engaging and heartfelt. I give it a B+. “Lost and Found”by Maria Haskins is an intriguing look at the sole survivor of a capsule crash and what she does to keep herself occupied while waiting to be rescued. All I could think, after reading this story, was that psych tests are there for a reason. Tight and evocative, the only thing that lets this story down is a tangent that's left dangling at the end. If not for that, I would have scored it as an A. As it stands, I give it a B. Patrik Centerwall's “The Publisher's Reader” hits the spot for all authors who've wondered how to classify their books. Helga is a reader (but, really, more an editor) who's tasked with reading the work of licensed writers, to make sure they abide by “the rules”, before pushing qualifying manuscripts out to the wider public via their ereaders. But her new writer is breaking all the rules and, yet, is so brilliant, Helga can't stop reading. What should she do? A nice change of pace, with a killer last line, I rate this story as an A-. We're back to bleak with “Stories from the Box” by Björn Engström, about a nameless man who's been imprisoned in a small, cramped box. An unknown amount of time passes, and he resigns himself to dying while entrapped, when the lock on his box suddenly opens and he topples out. My issues with the story revolve around technicalities. Having rested against a rusty iron surface myself, I can say that it does not feel like “smooth softness”. And someone who has been imprisoned inside such a contraption, where he can't even stretch out his legs, would not be able to stand up and walk within minutes of release. I found this story to be more a dystopic travelogue than anything else, but competently written. B-. KG Johansson takes us back to the good old days of H Rider Haggard-type adventures in “The Membranes in the Centering Horn”. With great white adventurers, deceitful natives, otherworldly treasures, a struggle at the edge of a precipice, and an enduring and tantalising mystery, Johansson updates the tropes for a modern audience and does a terrific job of it. As what one would call a “mixed-blood native” myself, I thoroughly approve. A solid A. If you've ever read Joe Haldeman's “The Forever War”, you'll know where Oskar Källner is coming from in “One Last Kiss Goodbye”. An interstellar traveller returns to her home and to the man she left behind. To her, it's been eight years since she left Earth; to him, several decades. He is eaten up with bitterness and loss but there is one more thing she wants from him. Will he give it? Källner gets the dialogue spot on in this relative love story, and I've noted him down as an author to read more of. The story itself is poignant and, even though we know how it must end, strangely satisfying. Highly recommended. A. “The Mirror Talks” by Sara Kopljar is not for the faint of heart. After losing her child, a woman orders an android replica as a replacement but comes to the conclusion that part of the joy in raising a real child is watching as its personality matures and blossoms, something a pre-programmed android will never do. The subsequent actions of the mother are brutal, vicious...and entirely understandable, driven by grief and revenge. If you've read Stephen King's “Pet Sematary”, you may have an inkling of the kind of brutality I'm talking about, but if you're a sensitive soul, don't read this story. I would have rated this story higher but for the entirely superflous second diary entry. As it stands, it gets a B- from me. “Keep Fighting Until the Machines Fall Asleep” by Eva Holmquist places us in a world of ever-present surveillance and the perspective of one young woman who dreams of a future without AI interference. An interesting story, “Keep Fighting Until the Machines Fall Asleep” is bogged down by sloppy editing and punctuation. It also hit one of my hot buttons: “discrete” and “discreet” are Two. Separate. Words. They are not interchangeable. Learn the difference. C+. The master cloud—a dark mass drifting through space, swallowing everything that travels into it—is on the move in “Outpost Eleven” by Markus Sköld, and Marta, newly-minted commander of Outpost Eleven must monitor it and take whatever action she deems necessary, oblivious to the horror of the reality she is about to confront. Unfortunately, this story comes across as rather half-baked. There are slips that are unintentionally funny

(e.g. “it could probably cover the entire region of space...save for a few really remote planets”; “...there is nothing alive on the station. Not even any anomalous heat signatures”), incorrect (e.g. “How many times she's sat there, looking out the enormous panoramic window?”), or just don't make time-sense. Marta has only been a commander on Outpost Eleven for thirty minutes, yet we're told the outpost has been her home for the “last five years”. In which case, why is she carrying around a piece of paper that she found “when she came aboard, just a few hours ago”? There are enough questions here to detract severely from the plot. Space adventure seems like it should be easy to write, but it demands a mastery of time, tense and events that is missing from “Outpost Eleven”. Better luck next time, but this one is an unfortunate D. We're back to first-person with “Messiah”, Anna Jakobsson Lund's take on the choices one makes. The one they call the Messiah really is the saviour, the person who has the potential to guide mankind to a better—or, at least, a less dismal—future, but the path to hope isn't clear and successive failures have taken their toll. This is the kind of story that usually wins awards, but it's a little too cryptic for my taste, illuminated by one brief exchange that I had to go back and re-read. Maybe positioning is the issue. I progressed through the entire anthology, to the final story out of a selection of twenty-six, and it sucks what little energy I thought I had left out of me. I give it a B-. The anthology, “Waiting for the Machines to Fall Asleep” is a fine and varied selection of speculative fiction from Sweden. While I may quibble with the grammar and punctuation, the level of English is at a high standard. If I have any issues with the anthology as a whole, it's that it's not as tightly edited as I would have liked. And, one more thing. Line breaks may work well to separate sections in print books of PDFs, but are ignored when rendering for Epub or Mobi on digital screens. I know that the first line of each new section was left non-indented, but this was a subtle indicator and, without a clearer signpost, I lost too much time switching mental gears. Western readers will find much here that is familiar, but also enough to give a glimpse of a different cultural perspective, one that is much more female-friendly than the Anglo norm. I look forward to reading more Swedish specfic in the future and wish all the writers, and Affront Publishing, the best for their future careers. To purchase a copy of the anthology for yourself, go to the anthology's page at Affront Publishing.

Old School Sensibilities Short Story by Christina Tang-Bernas Like almost every kid these days, Carrie had her first brain stem port, or beesp, installed at the base of her neck on her twelfth birthday. A simple outpatient procedure paid for by her proud parents. Carrie had chosen a pale-blue finish for the port opening, the color of the skies in the early afternoons when she and Shalin would watch the neighborhood ravens winging through the clouds on lazy Saturdays. Our little girl all grown up, Dad had said when she’d woken up, broad hand heavy atop her fine blonde hair. Mom had smiled at his words, leaning over to kiss Dad's cheek. The next day, Carrie had run all the way to Shalin’s house to show him. “Just wait until you get one,” she’d said. His fingertips had grazed over the small opening and a shiver had run the length of her spine. She’d pulled away, rubbing her hands against the goose bumps along her arms. “Your house is kind of chilly.” “Sorry,” he’d said, shoving a thick sweater over her head. And even though she started sweating as soon as the cloth enveloped her, she still wore it all the way home. Shalin, with his super-conservative parents, had to contend with the glacial-slow speeds of doing everything the manual way until he was sixteen, when installation of the beesp was mandated by law. And even then, he’d received the most basic government-issued model. By that time, Carrie had upgraded her beesp to the latest lightning-fast quantum-computing model, implanted a chip in her left eye capable of viewing both ultraviolet and infrared frequencies, and acquired an all-over skin graft that could display any color, pattern, or picture she wanted. Shalin liked designing intricate tattoos that draped over her shoulders and wrapped around her calves, his fingers a blur over his keyboard as he programmed them into corresponding digital pixels she would later upload into herself. How much could Shalin accomplish if he could think his creations into being without any physical limitations? Carrie couldn’t wait to find out. *** The day Shalin received his beesp, she went over to his house with a package of his favorite sugar cookies. He refused to see her. His parents said he’d had a bad reaction to the operation and was recovering, to please come back at a later unknown time. She waited all day and night in a state of panic, before receiving a short staticky burst of message which flashed like lightning in her skull, “I’m fine. You ate all my cookies, didn’t you?” She had, but she’d gone out and bought him another package right after. “No,” she sent back. Carrie curled up around the latest cookies and contemplated eating them also. Even when Shalin started coming to school again, a week after the installation, he didn’t say much about what had happened. When Carrie offered to connect their two beesps together so she could send him a copy of the new Token Molerats album, he’d recoiled. He must’ve seen the look on her face because he reached out a hand in her direction, though Carrie noticed his fingers hovered an inch above her currently-ombre-blue skin and never settled. “It’s just—” Shalin started. He stopped, then cleared his throat. “I’m still getting used to everything, you know?” Stuffing down the hurt, Carrie nodded. “Sure. Whatever. I’ll send it to your home computer, yeah?”

58 As far as she knew, Shalin never used his beesp except when required. Some days, Carrie wondered if he ever felt lonely, the way he cut himself off from the invisible web connecting everyone else. If it did bother him, he didn’t let it show. She took to making hard copy downloads of everything that came her way. Just in case. *** Two days after her seventeenth birthday, Carrie’s skin went on the fritz. “Wow,” Shalin said, when he first saw her in class. “I haven’t seen you with your own skin color in a long time. I’d forgotten how you looked.” His long legs stretched out before him, crossed at the ankles and tucked underneath the seat in front. Carrie blushed, cursing her inability to hide the red she could feel burning high on her cheekbones. “My stupid skin’s malfunctioning. I don’t know what happened, but my dad’s going to take me to get it fixed this weekend.” Shalin smiled, teeth a bare white, skin the same dusky brown it’d always been. “Well, I think you look pretty like this too.” “That’s because you’re an old man stuck in a skinny kid’s body,” Carrie replied. He hummed under his breath. She could almost feel his gaze trace over her features, down her neck, and along the length of her arm. His eyes shifted away, back to his tablet. Carrie tried to peek over his shoulder, to see if he was drawing her. He did so at times, the point of his stylus tracing her outline in shades of gray. She’d look up to see him sketching away, eyes flicking in her direction, tongue caught in the corner of his lips. He never showed her the finished portraits though. She wished she knew how she looked in his eyes. Even after the repairs, Carrie reverted back to her original skin color every so often. “It’s trendy, you know,” she told Shalin one day. “The retro look.” She watched him program another tattoo design, now for an after-school job instead of for her, and pretended not to notice his wide smile. He pushed a paper flyer over to her. Who even used paper anymore? Carrie smoothed it out before scanning and committing it to her ‘Shalin’ files. “An art show?” “You have to go,” he said. “I have a surprise for you.” His fingers paused over the keyboard. “Besides, I won’t know anyone else there except my teacher.” “What about the other kids in your class?” Shalin hunched his shoulders, and she didn’t press further. *** In the dim confines of a ritzy gallery, Carrie downed her non-alcoholic champagne. She scanned the room for Shalin’s black curls. Spotting them in the far corner, she pushed her way through the bustling crowd. “Nice show,” she said, raising her glass towards him. He nodded, eyes fixed on a point somewhere behind her. The exits, she supposed, knowing him. Carrie ran her palms down her black skirt, trying to think of something to say to break the silence. “Where are your parents?” she asked. “Oh, they’re arriving soon. Papa had to work late today.” He fell quiet again. She glanced around them, at the white walls laden with paintings with Shalin’s name scrawled at the bottom. “So I really like your art, as usual, though I can’t claim to understand what they’re supposed to mean,” Carrie said. “Like this one,” she pointed at one full of red-hued washes named ‘Untitled No. 12’. “What does this one mean?” Shalin slanted her a sideways glance. “They’re abstract paintings. They mean whatever you want them to mean.” “How come you never exhibit any of your realistic-style paintings?” Carrie crossed her arms. “Or any with me in them. I did spend hours posing for a few of them.”

59 “Those aren’t meant for public viewing.” “Why not?” “Because I don’t want anyone to see you the way I do.” Carrie froze. “What does that mean?” He shrugged. “Shalin, what does that mean?” His Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat, and then he pushed by her, “I think my parents are here.” Carrie watched him go, not seeing his parents anywhere. She told herself she didn’t care. It was much later when Carrie remembered his supposed ‘surprise’. She couldn’t think what it could be, and had forgotten to ask. “Whoa, did you see that?” the boy standing beside her said to his friend. He blinked, and again. She squinted at Shalin’s art, examining each piece in minute detail, but still couldn’t figure out what she was missing. Carrie clenched her fists. What were these strangers seeing that she wasn't? "Excuse me," she said to the boy, “what were you talking about earlier? Is there something special about these paintings?” The boy raised an eyebrow, looking at her with an expression akin almost to pity. “Sorry, you can only see it with the right set of eyes.” His friend nudged him. “Just because you’re a rich bastard who can afford every upgrade, doesn’t mean everyone else is so lucky.” They moved away, still arguing. Carrie frowned at their retreating backs. What did that mean? The right set of eyes? Oh, of course. She began filtering the room through the different frequencies of light, then let out a gasp, her hand flying up to cover her open mouth. In the center of each of Shalin’s paintings was a raven, wings spread, depicted in spare brushstrokes of ultraviolet paint. *** On a late spring afternoon, a month after her eighteenth birthday, Carrie lay side-by-side next to Shalin in the town’s tiny park, and tried not to think about how close his fingers were to hers. She could almost count the air molecules separating their knuckles. “I’m getting a mecha heart,” Carrie said, “as a graduation gift. Synchronized to an atomic clock, calibrated to my lung capacity, and guaranteed to never skip a beat. Lifetime warranty, of course.” Shalin leaned back on his elbows, dark eyes focused on the clumps of clouds scattered across pale-blue sky. “That’s actually kind of sad in a way. It’s not quite the same is it, to fall in love and never have your heart show it?” “You don’t need arrhythmia to know how love feels,” she said. A nearby raven squawked as if in agreement. “Love is a series of hormonal and cognitive interactions. Nothing to do with the heart, like all you hopeless romantics believe.” “We’re a dying breed,” he replied. “All passionate metaphors and outdated nonsense.” Carrie knocked her shoulder into his. “Last of the Romantics. Sounds dashing. They should make a movie about you.” “Please,” Shalin said, “there aren’t any actors good-looking enough to play me.”

60 Her heart stuttered in her chest as she watched the last wisps of dying light gild his cheekbones, and couldn’t help but agree. It would be the last time they went cloud-watching before graduation. *** They sat together on Shalin’s front stoop after the ceremony and the parental fuss, the sun-warmed metal door pressed against their backs. Carrie tapped her fingers against her knees, picturing the box sitting inside the bag propped against her legs. “So, you’re leaving in a week, huh?” Shalin asked. Carrie laughed. “It’s not like we can’t communicate twenty-four-seven, even with your grandpa sensibilities.” “It’s still not the same,” Shalin said, his chin propped in his right palm. Now or never. “Here.” Carrie dug into her bag and handed over the medium-sized box, tied with glittery ribbon. “Hope you like how I went all old-school with the wrapping.” “What’s this?” Shalin asked. “Open it.” “What, now?” “Yes, now, silly,” Carrie said. With careful movements, he pulled the wrapping paper apart to lay bare a clear acrylic cube. A human heart was embedded inside, all dusky pinks and browns. The small gold plaque screwed onto the bottom read: “The Heart of Carrie Sutherland. Handle With Care.” Carrie fidgeted as Shalin examined every angle, sunlight illuminating different sections of the thick muscle. Finally, she blurted out, “Happy early birthday. I know it’s not for another month, but, you know, I’m not going to be around, so…” Shalin looked up, some strange emotion shifting through his brown eyes that Carrie had never seen before. “Carrie,” he started, “is this—” “Just a little something,” she interrupted. “More like a token really. I mean, it’s not super-useful or anything. A paperweight.” “Thank you,” Shalin said, more breath than solid words. “This is the best present anyone has ever given me.” Setting the acrylic cube down on the ground beside him, he reached out for her. His fingers curled in the air around her shoulders, hesitating, before he sucked in a deep breath and let them settle around her upper arms. Shalin leaned forward, pressing his forehead against hers. “To be fair, you’ve owned my metaphorical heart since the day you showed up on my doorstep the week after my twelfth birthday and said you were going to tutor me despite my physical disability.” Carrie cringed. “I was a little brat, wasn’t I?” Shalin laughed. “Oh yeah,” he said, “but I’m glad that you, that essential Carrie, has never changed.” “Yeah, well, that’s your old-school sensibilities talking,” Carrie said. “Have I told you how much I like that about you?” “No,” Shalin said, his voice soft now, uncertain. “Tell me.” She leaned up, left a soft kiss on his cheek. “I like you, just the way you are.” “Sounds good.” He pulled away. “Then, let’s promise. You keep being you, and I’ll keep being me, and we’ll both keep liking that about each other.” “Yeah,” Carrie whispered, “okay.” She stood up, brushing the dirt from the seat of her pants. “I should get going. Still have a lot of packing left to do.”

61 “Wait,” Shalin stood too. Then, for the first time since the day his beesp was installed, he connected both of theirs together, sending her a compressed file. Carrie waited until she sat cross-legged in the middle of her bed before accessing it. It was a folder full of pictures, at least a hundred of them flashing by in her minds-eye, ranging from half-finished sketches to fullscale paintings. All portraits of her, each labeled with the date it had been created. The earliest was a simple grayscale drawing dated the day after her twelfth birthday. The most recent was tagged a week ago. And she looked beautiful in every one of them. The last picture, however, was a painting of a raven. So realistic and detailed, Carrie thought that if she reached out, she would feel the stiff glossy feathers under her fingertips. Reflected in its eye were her and him, lying on the grass, and the painting was labeled, “Always.”

Star Cruise: Marooned (Veronica Scott) Release date: 22-June-2015 Publisher: Self Available formats: Kindle, Epub Price: $0.99 URLs: Get the book at Amazon | Get the book at iTunes | Get the book at B&N CHAPTER ONE The shuttle broke out of the cloud layer and swooped over a breathtaking vista of pink and green foliage, practically glowing in the vid screens. The rainforest spread across the planet as far as the scanners could detect. Clouds of multicolored birds flew above the treetops, drawing the eye to their wheeling movement across the turquoise sky. Here and there, rainbows curved from puffy clouds, where seasonal showers had added moisture to the air. As Meg walked through the cabin, offering refreshments to their guests, she attempted to direct their attention to the view of the planet. Anchored by trees soaring hundreds of feet from the surface, the foliage and avian wildlife were something never seen on the highly civilized worlds where these people lived and worked. Although they’d paid a staggering amount of credits to be taken to this site, neither the primary guest, nor the people he’d brought, seemed to care. Drinking, playing cards, and indulging in sexual innuendo took all their attention. Not much changed from cruise to cruise with the rich and powerful, despite Meg’s best efforts to share the simple pleasure she found in the surroundings at each port of call. At the rear of the main cabin, she found at least one passenger watching the screen above her seat. “How are you doing?” Callina Finchon Bettis took her attention from the view for a moment, giving Meg a little wave. “Fine, smooth ride so far. When can we see the Falls?” “Soon. The pilot likes to swoop in from the front, as if we’re going to splash right through the water.” Meg leaned closer. “But don’t worry, he veers to the side at the last moment.” She placed an iced fruit drink at the woman’s elbow. “Maybe five more minutes.” As Callina murmured thanks, Meg retreated to the galley, where she found the only other crew member besides the pilot. “Passengers all happy now?” he asked, raising one eyebrow. “I don’t think this bunch is ever happy,” she said. “You’ll find generational billionaires rarely are, when you’ve done more of these private charters. But at least I’ve supplied them with feelgoods.” She slid the drink tray into the chiller. “Did you need something?” Simon ‘Red’ Thomsill held up his hands in mock surrender. “I know, this is your territory and I shouldn’t be here, Guild rules. But the pilot wanted coffee.” Hands on her hips, Meg smothered an impatient sigh. “First of all, he should have buzzed me for it, and secondly, he knows perfectly well only guests are entitled to genuine Terran coffee.” “Wow, are you this dedicated to rules all the time?” He leaned against the emergency portal and studied her, one eyebrow raised as if he might be trying to tease her. Two internal call signals pinged, one right after the other. From the cabin, she heard female passengers

63 swearing at each other. She straightened her tunic as if gathering determination, and headed out to mediate whatever the problem was now. “No tip is going to be big enough,” she said under her breath. Pausing on the threshold, she glanced at Red. “I’m responsible for the coffee inventory on this shuttle, and it comes out of my pay if the weight is short.” “I didn’t know.” “Yeah, there’s a lot you don’t know, rookie. But Drewson does. The synth stuff crew members drink is over there.” Pointing at the proper carafe, she left the galley as more voices joined the clamor in the passenger section. One of the scantily clad women had spilled her beverage all over another’s ample cleavage, staining both the woman’s skin and skimpy bikini top. The agressor was pulling the other’s hair and screaming insults, while her victim tried to land some blows anywhere she could reach. The primary guest laughed and made bets with the two men seated next to him, wagering on which woman would prevail. Meg waded into the fray. “Ladies, please, we’re about to land. You’re required to be in your seats before we can make our final approach.” She caught the second woman’s elbow. Modulating her voice to a soothing tone, Meg said, “I can remove the stain, Ma’am, no problem.” The women paused in their altercation, gazing beyond her with wide eyes. A moment later, both fluffed their hair. Without turning, Meg knew Red had followed her. She’d observed his effect on females more than once already on this cruise. Something about his 6’4” height, the heavily muscled biceps, the chiseled features, the sparkling green eyes…Well, okay, to be honest, he had the same effect on her, but she wasn’t about to let him know. Been there, done that with a tempting crewman or two on her early tours. Crew romances were nothing but trouble when the first attraction inevitably flamed out. Although Red was more tempting than anyone she’d met in a long time. “Second Officer Drewson asked me to come and make sure the accommodations and the service are satisfactory,” he said, his voice deep and slow. “Oh, yes, we’re fine.” The girl with the stained top brushed at her skin, accentuating her ample chest with the gesture, and smiled as if she hadn’t been screeching obscenities a moment prior. “So nice of you.” The other batted her three eyes at Red, green lashes sweeping her cheeks. She held out her arm. “I think I might have a scratch.” “I’ll get the medkit while Miss Antille helps Sharmali,” he said, leaning close to inspect the tiny red mark on the passenger’s creamy skin. “Fine.” Meg was pissed and she planned to let him know it. What the seven hells did he think he was doing, interfering with her care for her passengers? He was crew, not service. She wasn’t the rookie here. Following Sharmali to her seat, Meg drew the cleaning pod from her belt and passed it a few inches above the woman’s skin and the orange and purple fabric of the bikini top. The pod hummed and the stains lifted in a rain of reverse droplets, absorbed into the cleaner, leaving no trace. Not bothering with thanks, Sharmali practically shoved Meg out of the way to return to where Red was patting soothing ointment on the second passenger’s face, having already bandaged the red mark on her arm. Moving past the seat where the first aid was occurring, Meg rolled her eyes. The mark was so tiny, it didn’t merit discussing, much less treatment. Or his holding the woman’s hand as she hyperventilated. Irritation at the cozy scene flooded Meg’s nerves, making her voice a bit on the shrill side. “Don’t you have to

64 return to the flight deck, Officer Thomsill?” Technically, she outranked him when it came to passenger care. He gave her an enigmatic look, gathered the medical supplies, and headed for the galley behind her. “You’re welcome,” he said as she keyed the privacy screen between them and the passenger seats. “Listen, I didn’t ask for your help and I don’t need it. You made me appear incompetent just now.” Grabbing the medkit from him, she stuffed it into the proper niche, slamming the compartment door. Eyebrows raised, he rocked back on his heels. “That wasn’t my intention.” “We’ll be landing in three minutes, folks.” Drewson’s voice on the com was authoritative. “The Falls is coming into range on your vidscreens. Officer Thomsill, you’re needed on the flight deck.” “Saved by the pilot, or I’d be giving you a piece of my mind,” Meg said, shaking her finger at Red. “Don’t forget his synth coffee.” Red reached past her to grab the carafe. Leaning close, invading her personal space, he said, “We’ll continue this conversation later.” As he ascended in the one level gravlift to rejoin the pilot, she took a deep breath, pasted on her professional expression, and returned to the cabin to ensure the passengers were seated for landing and could perhaps be cajoled to spare a moment to glimpse the extremely expensive view. “Took you long enough,” Drewson said as Red reached the cockpit. “Here’s your synth,” he answered, more than a little annoyed. He suspected Drewson had set him up. The pilot guffawed as he accepted the steaming drink. “Miss By-The-Book wouldn’t give you the real stuff, would she? Didn’t think she would.” Red sank into his chair, rubbing the back of his neck. Yeah, his trip to the cabin had sure gone well. He’d managed to annoy Meg twice in ten minutes. Third time and he’d be a total write-off as far as she was concerned. Good intentions didn’t get him too far. Need to up your game, Thomsill. Meg was the only reason he’d signed on to this outfit. One glance at her, sitting at the next table in the Guild canteen on Sector Hub and he’d been a goner. Something about her sweet face and sparkling hazel eyes stuck in a man’s memory. When he heard there was an opening on this ship for a Third Officer, he’d put his other opportunity on hold, entered his bid, and apparently the captain liked his experience. But this was next to the last stop on the charter and so far Meg barely gave him the time of day. If she spoke to him at all. The other officers and crew members said she kept to herself and never dated co-workers. Which was smart of her, but didn’t help him much. The Sectors was a galaxy-wide civilization, the cushy job on hold for him with the CLC Line wouldn’t wait forever, and he might never see her again if he let this opportunity fall through. He’d never had much of a problem getting to know a woman before. Of course, none of them had mattered to him as much as Meg did. Desire to impress her made him self-conscious and fall over his own big feet. Every time. “Told you she’s impossible,” Drewson said. “I tried on our first cruise together, but she shut me down hard.” “Well quit ‘helping’ me, okay? I can screw this up enough on my own.” Red hid his frustration under a light tone. “Gonna miss you, rookie, if you don’t sign on with us again. It’s been a treat watching you try to make an impression on Meg. You should have gone after the Chief Stewardess. She’s been eyeing you, in case you haven’t gotten the message.” Except he wasn’t the least bit interested in anyone but Meg. Red gave himself a mental shake. He could plan complex operations in the field, improvise on the fly under the worst conditions, and had the medals to prove it—why couldn’t he manage to establish some kind of less than antagonistic relationship with Meg Antille?

65 See if there was any potential for something between them? Not for the first time, he berated himself for being an idiot, following a woman he’d only barely met across the Sector…but somehow a chance with Meg seemed worth it. Drewson fiddled with the controls. “Check the atmospherics, would you? Make sure those storms are tracking out to sea.” “Yes, sir.” Glad to be distracted, even for a moment, Red gave his attention to the instruments. True to Meg’s prediction, Drewson took the shuttle in through the iridescent spray thrown off by the Rainbow Falls, and executed a smooth landing on the small landing pad next to the beach. As she triggered the door to allow the passengers to exit for their excursion today, Meg said, “We’ll be here for four hours, so you have plenty of time to stroll along the beach, enjoy the view, and relax. It’s safe to swim in the lake, but please, no further out than the marker buoys where the sonic barrier begins. The crew and I’ll be setting up your pavilion and amenities, and serving the requested lunch in about an hour.” The music the Falls was famed for thundered outside. The water was effervescent, filled with bubbles of all the colors of the rainbow, having leached minerals from the planet’s surface as the river flowed toward the solitary ocean. The way the liquid poured through the cliff’s rocky channels and crevices produced constantly changing crystalline “music.” Meg loved it here. Dantaralon was one of her favorite spots. She stepped outside for a moment herself, before the work had to begin again. The air was warm, redolent with scent from the many flowering plants. “Wow.” Red descended the short ramp to stand beside her, staring at the waterfall in the distance. “Impressive, like the brochures promised.” “We specialize in conveying our passengers on a tour of exotic natural wonders,” Meg said. “This part of Sector Thirty is full of amazing sights on so many planets.” “Seen one waterfall, seen them all. Come on, let’s get this done before the Primary starts complaining.” Drewson left the shuttle, jumped off the ramp, and went to open the cargo hold. “Mr. Finchon and his guests have the place pretty much to themselves,” Red said, eyeing the empty landing pad, which held only one other shuttle, parked at the other end of the grid. “He should appreciate the exclusivity of the situation. Is this place usually so deserted?” Meg paused to take a second look. Red was right, there was only one set of charter cruise passengers already on the beach. She recognized the TDJ Lines banner flying from their gaudy turquoise pavilion. “Odd, while this isn’t peak season, we usually have to share with more neighbors than this.” “Can we cut the chitchat?” Drewson activated the three stubby robos inside the now-open hold. One after the other they trundled down their ramp, moving smoothly onto the terrain on their antigrav. The pilot tossed the control to Meg. “All yours.” She’d done this routine many a time. Directing the robos to the beach was simple. Once there, the biggest unfolded itself into a pavilion similar to TDJ’s, if less colorful, and the other two disgorged lounge chairs, her cooking apparatus, and more necessary equipment. Red brought the food and drink module, parking it next to Meg. “Are you sure you don’t need help? Shouldn’t the Chief Stew have come along today?” “Yes, ideally, but she said she had a headache.” Meg was busy unwrapping the precooked hors d’oeuvres. “It’s only a beach picnic, half the passengers didn’t come. I can deal. And she’s going to work ahead on décor for dinner, consult with the chef, all the arrangements the guests will never even notice. Will you go set up the flotation devices and the net for games, in case anyone actually wants to play?” “Aye aye.” He gave her a mock salute and trotted closer to the lakeshore, where the guests were settling into

66 their comfortable chairs. Meg followed to take drinks orders. The next hour or so was busy, but she enjoyed the pace. Made the time pass. Moments before she was ready to serve lunch, Red checked in with her again. “Anything else you need?” She realized her party hadn’t cleared their presence yet with the park rangers. Pushing her bangs off her forehead, she said, “Yes, can you do me a favor and run to the ranger station on the far side of the landing field? Usually, someone would have come by to check our permit, but maybe there’s a staff meeting running long or something. Tell the person at the desk our permits are in order, and I can show them after I’ve served lunch. Our line has a good reputation, so the ranger should be okay about it.” “No problem.” Despite his cheerful answer, he hesitated. “What does Drewson do on these trips ashore?” “As little as possible, believe me. Privilege of rank, or so he says. Actually, he’s not too good with the guests, so his absence is probably better for all of us, as far as the size of the tip at the end of the voyage.” Meg hoped she hadn’t said too much to the rookie, but her frustrations with Drewson grew every time he was assigned as the pilot bringing her ashore with passengers. As Red walked away, she served the buffet luncheon, which met with approval from their guests. The Far Horizon featured one of the Virochol Lines’ most experienced gourmet chefs—he shipped out as a package deal with their Captain, so her ship was much sought after for charters. Red came to report in the middle of lunch service, a puzzled frown on his face. “What did the ranger say?” Meg asked, plating more mini sandwiches. Shaking his head, Red said, “No one there.” “What?” She paused in the middle of drizzling artful condiments on the individual Azrigone beef patties. Laughing, thinking perhaps he was kidding, she said, “Are they out to lunch or something?” “Place is all closed up. I knocked, on the off chance someone was left as a caretaker, but the station shows all the signs of being abandoned." He ran one hand through the dark maroon hair that gave him his nickname. “Impossible. The rangers and their families live here year round. I’ll go check for myself later.” Annoyed at his failure to complete the simple task, she said, “Mr. Trever asked to go fishing, and that’s your job.” “Any hints on the best spot?” Red surveyed the lake. “I never paid much attention. I think there’s a sand bar off to the left. Try there.” She gestured vaguely. “The fishing gear is in the boat module, which you’ll have to bring from the shuttle.” Red departed to handle the task and she kept serving lunch and drinks. A few minutes later, she heard the purr of the small boat’s motor and raised her head long enough to watch Red skippering three guests onto the beautifully colored lake. Finishing the lunch service, she had a bit of free time before the mid afternoon snack. Mingling with the passengers held no appeal for her. She wasn’t working charters to try and snag a generational billionaire or intergalactic businessman. Meg sent as many of her credits as she could to her family, on their home world, to buy more land for the Antille spice farms. Scanning the beach for a moment, she considered the primary guest and the men he’d brought along on this cruise. A mix of businessmen like himself and faded celebrities to fawn over him and impress the men he wanted to do deals with. Shaking her head, she couldn’t wait to see the last of this bunch. Taking a glass of the refreshing faquilada fruit drink, she wandered toward the TDJ pavilion, hoping she knew a few of the cruise staff or crew. A woman in the other line’s uniform came to meet her, waving cordially.

67 Delighted, Meg recognized Sallira, a casual acquaintance in the Guild. Their circle of mutual friends was wide, so catching up on gossip took a few minutes. Then Meg said, “Hey, what’s the deal with the ranger station? My guy said it was closed. Did you see anyone official when you landed?” Sallira shook her head. “No, he’s right, the staff is all gone.” Making a funny face of regret, lips scrunched, she sighed. “Too bad, I had a flirtation going with the senior ranger last time I was here.” One eyebrow raised suggestively, she sipped her drink. “I was anticipating more fun and games this trip, if you know what I mean.” She nudged Meg in the ribs with her elbow. “Harmless fun, but he sure was cute.” Meg stared at the Falls and then the lake. The park gave the appearance of order, serene and beautiful as always. Maybe the Sector Thirty government had decided to cut costs by eliminating the rangers? But then why hadn’t she seen a bulletin to that effect? The captain gave her the permit token before the shuttle left the Far Horizon this morning, so he must not have known the permanent staff was gone either. There was a shout from the TDJ pavilion. One of the crew was hustling their obviously bewildered passengers toward Meg and Sallira, while a second man ran ahead, sprinting for the landing field as if he had a major predator on his heels. The other cruise staff member was matching him stride for stride, but skidded to a stop in the sand next to Sallira, breathing hard. “We gotta go, right now.” Eyes wide, the woman’s jaw dropped. “What are you talking about?” “Captain called, emergency channel, said get our butts up to the ship immediately.” Sallira twisted her hair into a knot as she prepared to return to work. “I guess gossip time is over, sorry, Meg. I’ll go pack the gear—” But the other TDJ woman was shaking her head, pulling her by the elbow. “No, the captain said leave everything. Run before the pilot leaves us.” “Is there something I should know?” Meg asked. No one ever abandoned the expensive robots and gear. Unease stirred in her gut. “I don’t know, captain didn’t give any details. We’re out of here.” The staffer grabbed a dawdling child who was digging a hole in the sand, and hurried to the incline leading to the shuttles. “Guess I better go,” Sallira said. “Maybe you should check with your captain, might be a solar flare or something.” Her crewmates were yelling and gesturing for Sallira to hurry so she didn’t linger for any more chitchat, taking off at a fast pace, leaving Meg alone on the beach. Moments later, the TDJ shuttle lifted straight from the pad and shot into the azure sky. Meg rubbed her elbow, suddenly feeling goose bumps. The beach wasn’t as welcoming anymore, despite the bright sun and the ethereal music from the Falls. The forlorn pavilion and humming equipment bothered her. “What’s with them?” She jumped, turning to find Red standing behind her. This time it was a bit comforting to have him by her side. “I don’t know.” “Is the other crew coming back later for their stuff?” His face was set in serious lines. “I-I don’t know.” Meg walked toward their own set up. “The TDJ staff member in charge said their captain got on the com from orbit about some emergency and recalled them.” “Did we get any bulletins?” Red asked. “Storms? Warn offs?” She shook her head. “Not that I heard of. You’re ship’s crew, you’re more likely to know than I am. Think I should ask Drewson to check in with the Far Horizon?” He scanned the beach, eyes hooded. “Yeah, I think you’ve got a good idea. I’ll cover things here.”

68 Meg handed him her empty glass. “Do you mind turning off their power grid?” Eyebrows raised, he gave her an incredulous stare. “The TDJ staff left the equipment running?” Not bothering to answer beyond a distracted nod, she made her way to the landing pad. The shuttle portal was locked, which seemed like excessive caution on Drewson’s part, but of course she had the override code. The cabin was empty, but she heard sounds from the rear, where there was a luxurious private bedroom. Reluctantly, she walked aft. Drewson and at least one of the passengers were obviously enjoying themselves, from the exclamations and noises she was overhearing. Maybe he wasn’t as bad with interpersonal relations as she’d believed. She knocked on the thick Zulairian mahogany door, another of the many expensive touches on their shuttle. Luxury all the way, was the Virochol Lines’ boast. No answer, but the voices inside the room had gone silent. She rapped her knuckles on the door again. “Drewson, it’s Meg. I need to talk to you—we may have a problem.” The door opened a crack, enough for her to see her fellow crew member’s naked body. Averting her eyes, she said, “Have you heard anything from the ship?” “Of course not. Why would I?” Drewson’s smile was more of a leer. “I’ve been busy.” “There’s something weird going on—” “I’m waiting,” said an impatient female voice from further inside the room. “You don’t want me to get cold, do you?” The Second Officer turned his head a fraction. “I’ll warm you up again, baby, no problem.” Meg tamped down her irritation. He was risking his job, not to mention the tip the entire crew worked for, if he got caught screwing a guest while on duty, but he was her commanding officer right now. He could make a lot of trouble for her. She wasn’t going to yield on her demand, though. “I think we need to check with the ship.” “All right,” he said, a rough edge of anger in his voice. He shut the door in her face and opened it open a moment later, extending his hand, the control panel token dangling on the chain of his suskadi-foot lucky charm. “You know how to open the coms; you call if you’re so damn worried. Tell them I’m attending to passenger relations, understand? And barring war breaking out between the rangers and us, do not interrupt me a second time.” The threat was clear. “Yes, sir.” The door slammed in her face. Meg turned and walked slowly to the bow, where the gravlift to the cockpit was located. Doubt assailed her. There were bound to be awkward questions why she was calling the ship. Maybe the TDJ crew had a problem with their vessel, nothing at all to do with anything affecting their own situation. In the galley, she paused, swinging the little good luck charm. “Am I overreacting?” Red didn’t think so, but then he was a rookie. Although rumor had it he was retired military, Special Forces or something, a drifter now, bumming his way through the galaxy pleasure spots. Maybe his opinion did count more than most rookie crew members’. Chewing her lip, she sank into her jump seat. But the passengers were her responsibility right now and the TDJ crew had abandoned a lot of pricey hardware in their haste to leave. “Okay, I’ll pretend I need clarification on dinner tonight, something the Primary might have asked.” Plan in mind, she left the chair to take the gravlift into the cockpit. All kinds of lights were flashing and there was a loud klaxon sounding. Hands over her ears, Meg rushed to the com panel, which she’d received cursory cross-training on, early in her stint as a cruise staff member. Hesitating for a moment, she flipped the controls to off. Then she swallowed hard and opened the link to

69 their ship in stationary orbit above. “Hello, Far Horizon, shuttle calling—” “Where the seven hells have you been? Where’s Drewson?” The voice she heard was so strained she could barely recognize the First Officer. She drew breath to speak, but was cut off. “Never mind, tell him everything’s—” There was a funny sort of crackle from the link and then silence. She waited a few moments, then tried closing and reopening the connection. Nothing. Ship to space atmospherics could be a chancy thing. Drewson had made it clear he would not appreciate her interrupting his private party twice, and anyway, right now there was no talking to the ship. The panel indicated someone else had entered the shuttle. Callina’s voice came over the internal com. “Meg? Are you here?” She flipped the switch. “I’m in the cockpit. What do you need?” The last thing she wanted was the woman going near the private bedroom. “Mr. Thomsill sent me to get you and the medkit. Sharmali’s been bitten by some kind of eel thing and she’s bleeding really bad.” “I’ll be right down.” Meg rose, staring at the now quiet com board. She decided to leave the ship-to-ship and general hailing frequencies open. With mischievous amusement, she piped the links directly to the luxury cabin, set at high volume. If the ship did call again, Drewson was going to know it. He could make his own excuses when he answered. She could always claim she’d forgotten how to adjust the volume. When the gravlift deposited her in the galley, Callina was waiting, shifting from foot to foot, tears on her cheeks. Rushing to tell her news, the passenger’s words tumbled out. “Sharmali was in the water and this thing grabbed her, pulled her under. Mr. Thomsill rescued her. I’ve never seen anything like it, outside the adventure trideos. He was amazing, the way he fought the beast in the water with his knife. But she’s screaming and there’s so much blood.” “He didn’t get bitten too, did he?” Callina shook her head. “I don’t think so. He was acting normal.” Deciding at most Sharmali had fallen afoul of a non-venomous water snake, because the sonic barrier kept the serious predators at bay, Meg grabbed the medkit and handed it to Callina. More of the female passenger’s drama over nothing. “Here, there should be all the equipment and medicines he needs to treat Sharmali’s bite. I’m sure the wound can’t be too bad. Tell him I’ll be right there.” Sniffling, Callina sprinted for the exit. Meg looked around, anxiety making her queasy. Where was she going to leave the precious control panel token? Of course Drewson could operate the shuttle without it—there was a backup hidden where only he knew—but he’d be angry if she kept it. Guild rules and all. Deciding to stash it in his coffee mug, she stepped to the left when something caught her eye—an unmarked, sealed compartment where the officers’ weapons were held. Did she dare? Yes, today she did. Things were definitely going awry and getting scarier. Drewson could give her hell later, but if one of the deadly eels had somehow gotten inside the barrier on the beach, other predatory creatures might be in the vicinity as well. Her passengers could be in jeopardy. It took only a moment to unlock the panel with Drewson’s token, and withdraw the two small blasters. After resealing the cabinet, she stuck the weapons in a bag meant for cleaning supplies, threw the token into Drewson’s coffee mug as planned, and ran from the shuttle. The door sealed shut after her. On the beach, there was chaos. An eel, easily two feet in diameter and eight feet long, lay convulsing on the

70 sand, Red’s hunting knife buried to the hilt in one eye. The crewman had the medkit open beside him and was struggling to staunch the blood flow from Sharmali’s lower leg, while she lay on a red-stained towel and moaned. Callina was standing beside them, trying to help. The other men and women milled on the beach nearby, drinking and talking in too loud voices. As Meg headed for the injured passenger, the Primary intercepted her. “Miss Antille, I demand to know how something like this could happen.” Purple in the face, he waved a hand at Sharmali. “I paid top dollar, if not an exorbitant price, for a safe, enjoyable cruise for myself and my guests, and now the poor girl’s had her foot eaten!” He was so upset he was spitting. “On behalf of the Line, I certainly apologize, sir. We do everything we can to ensure the safety of our guests under all circumstances, but if she swam beyond the sonic barrier—” “She was standing in three inches of water right next to me,” Finchon said. “That monster could have just as easily gotten my foot.” “The barrier’s off,” Red informed her, not glancing up from his task. “Can you argue with him later? I need your help.” Meg ran to his side, the Primary matching her step for step, yelling at her about lawsuits and refunds. She tried to stem the tide of his vitriol so she could concentrate. “Sir, please, let us assist Sharmali, and then I’ll be happy to discuss the legalities.” Trever, the retired pro athlete, came forward and took his host by the arm, shoving a drink into his hand and drawing him aside. Meg took a deep breath of relief and knelt beside Red. “What do you want me to do?” “Apply pressure to the wound for a minute while I see what antivenom we’ve got.” Gulping against her nausea, Meg set her hand on the makeshift bandages and pressed hard. “You said the barrier was off?” “Must be. There was more than one of these things right in the shallows at the beach. We were lucky no one else got attacked. I got her out of the water as fast as I could so the blood wouldn’t attract other predators.” He sat on his heels, frowning, holding an inject. “This is only a generic. Will it work on eel venom?” “It’s all we’ve got on the shuttle. It’ll have to hold her until we get to the ship’s sick bay.” As he gave Sharmali the inject, Meg eyed the wound with deep misgiving. The woman’s leg was definitely swelling and there were ugly purple streaks advancing toward her knee. “This is my fault,” she said. “How do you figure?” Red applied a light tourniquet. “I should have known if the ranger station was closed, the barriers might be shut off, but I didn’t check.” “Well, keep your voice down, the Primary is pissed off enough right now. Don’t add fuel to his fire. We’d better get her to the shuttle and hustle offplanet, to the ship. What did you find out?” He turned to take more towels from Callina with a murmured thanks and wrapped the oversize, gaily colored fabric around Sharmali. “She’s going into shock, gotta keep her warm.” “Drewson said he hadn’t heard anything. I called the ship myself, but we got interrupted. Signal failed or something.” Meg rose as he did, admiring the smooth manner in which Red lifted the injured woman, not jostling her. “We’ll know soon enough.” He shifted Sharmali to lie more comfortably against his chest and walked away as if her weight was nothing to him. “Guess it’s our turn to leave the equipment behind, at least temporarily.” “Oh, Lords of Space, of course.” Meg grabbed the cleaning supplies bag, since the blasters were in there, thankfully unneeded. She detoured to flip the switch turning off the power grid, dropped the bag inside the nearest robo’s storage cavity to leave her hands free, and then caught up to the guests at the base of the walkway leading to the landing pad.

71 The rumble of the shuttle’s engines caught her by surprise. How could Drewson possibly know about the emergency? As she decided he must have checked the beach-facing vidscreens for some reason, the tenor of the sound changed from warmup to full power. In disbelief, she saw the shuttle rising from the pad. “What the seven hells is he doing?” Red yelled. “Stay clear, don’t get caught in the backflare,” Meg screamed, pulling at the guests. Most shrank away from the landing pad, but the Primary strode up the ramp, shaking his fist and yelling curses at the pilot. Red set Sharmali in the sand and sprinted to tackle Finchon before he got crisped. The two men rolled on the ramp, the ungrateful host trying to punch Red. As the crewman laid their passenger out with a swift right hook to the jaw, the shuttle cleared the trees and shot into the sky, leaving them behind in the blink of an eye. “Now what?” Callina said, shielding her eyes with one hand as she watched the shuttle grow smaller and smaller in the sky. “He won’t forget to pick us up later will he?” “Of course he won’t,” Meg said, fear making it hard to enunciate. The captain would send Drewson or someone to collect them. He wouldn’t abandon half his passengers and two of his crew, would he? “What do we do now?” asked one of the female passengers in a shaky voice. Realizing the entire group was all watching her with varying degrees of puzzlement, fear, and annoyance, Meg cleared her throat. “I think Mr. Thomsill and I need to see if we can get the ranger station open. Sharmali would be better off there while we wait for the shuttle to return, than lying on the open beach. But if you’d like to resume your picnic, there’s no reason not to. We’re scheduled to be here for two more hours. I’m sure the crew’ll come pick us up on time.” “Where are Lindy and Sam?” someone asked, voice rising in alarm. “And Pirankai?” said Trever, scanning the faces around him, forehead wrinkled in a frown. “Pirankai was on the shuttle, um conferring with Mr. Drewson,” Meg answered, rapidly, remembering that the retired athlete had been quite cozy with the lithe blond passenger for the last day or so. She hoped he didn’t put two and two together about what Drewson and Pirankai might have been doing, or the entire crew’s tip might be diminished. Counting heads, all worries over the eventual tip fled as she realized she’d failed in yet another duty. Two of her passengers were missing and would have been left behind temporarily if the rest had gone in the shuttle with Drewson. “We’ll have to find them,” she said. “Does anyone remember what direction Lindy and Sam went?” “Right now, we have other priorities,” Red interrupted. “The two of them’ll probably come wandering in of their own volition soon enough. I’m sure if we searched we’d find them, uh, admiring the scenery someplace close by, which would be embarrassing for everyone concerned. Okay, folks, I think Miss Antilles had an excellent idea—you might as well relax, and follow the original plan for now.” “Can I get two volunteers to help us get Sharmali settled at the ranger station?” Meg asked. “Keep an eye on her?” “Well, don’t look at me,” Harelly said, as several of the other guests glanced in his direction. “I only play a doctor on the trideo shows. The sight of blood makes me ill.” Callina and her husband, Peter, volunteered. As the other passengers slowly hiked through the sand to their pavilion by the lake, Meg, Red, and the volunteers headed for the ranger station on the far side of the landing pad. “What about him?” asked Bettis, who Meg remembered was Finchon’s employee, a personal assistant or something. He and his wife filed past the groggy charter Primary, who was sitting now, holding his jaw. “I’ll deal with him later,” Red said.

72 “He’s gonna be pissed. He’s gonna sue you and your company for every credit,” the man predicted, excitement in his voice. “He’ll probably end up owning the whole cruise line before he’s done.” “Not my problem right now.” Red’s voice was cheerful. Meg admired his attitude. She was dizzy with anxiety and worry, happy to follow his lead for the moment. What in the seven hells had Drewson been thinking, taking off without them? The ranger station was ominously quiet. The storm shutters were latched and the usually immaculate landscaping had become overgrown, weeds running riot, untrimmed vines establishing a foothold on the ornamental fence, and even scaling one wall. “How long do you guess the rangers have been gone?” Meg said, eyeing the building. She glanced at the living quarters to the left, noticing the same general run down air. The three small houses were tightly sealed, as if hunched against a coming storm. “The forest grows fast,” Red said. “Probably not more than a few months. I wonder why we weren’t warned, though.” “Warned?” Callina Bettis picked up on his remark. “Are we in some kind of danger?” Red and Meg exchanged glances. “He means we should have been notified there wouldn’t be any immediate help onsite,” Meg said, forcing herself to speak the lie calmly. “In case of an emergency, like the unfortunate bite Sharmali suffered.” Setting the injured woman on a picnic table, Red went to the front door of the station, Meg on his heels. She tried activating the portal to no avail, punching the tabs hard. “You think the last person out would have left it set to open, general access, in case anyone needed help the way we do.” She thumped her fist on the door. “Unless the staff didn’t expect anyone to be here,” Red said. “Are you sure there’s not something you forgot to tell me?” “I swear, you know as much as I do.” She leaned closer and lowered her voice. “Drewson was boning Pirankai in the private cabin when I got to the shuttle, coms off, so if there were any bulletins, he missed them.” “Idiot.” Red retreated a step or two, eyeing the door. “Well, nothing for it.” “Are you going to break it down?” Eyebrows raised, he gave her a glance. “Thanks for the compliment but it’d take a battle robo to get through this storm portal by brute force.” “What then?” He stepped to the keypad, flipping open the cover, and entered a series of numbers and symbols so rapidly she had no idea what the sequence might be. “You’ve been here before?” Meg asked. He shook his head. “Special Forces, Team Twelve. We each have a special access code enabling our entry into any door, ship, vault, or facility in the Sectors.” The storm door jerked away from the threshold and then began to roll into the roof recess. The window shutters on all four sides of the building followed suit a moment later. Meg knew her mouth was hanging open. Biting her lip, she tried to make sense of this new information. “You’re on active military duty, but working as crew on a charter ship? Are you undercover or something?” “Retired. Wasn’t sure my code would work, but we have a saying in the Teams—no one is ever completely released from service.” He grimaced. “Not until we die or the Mawreg have been erased from the Sectors. I should live so long.” He pushed the inner door open. “Let’s see what we have here. Stay behind me.” The lights didn’t respond to voice command or their physical presence. “I guess the rangers powered down

73 before departing. Shutters must be on auxiliary. I’ll have to check the situation out later,” he said, pausing on the threshold. “At least the windows let in enough ambient light for now.” “How long do you think we’re going to be here?” Meg was disturbed by his mention of later. “Depends on what the problem in orbit is.” He stopped, giving her a hard look. “Anything like this ever happen before?” “No. Drewson is an idiot, but he’d never abandon us. And Captain Jonsle certainly won’t maroon us.” “He may not have a choice. I don’t want to alarm you, but we could be in a bad situation here. I hope not, but just between the two of us, I’m not feeling too positive. Whatever spooked the TDJ captain into recalling his people had to be damn serious. I don’t want to alarm our passengers because panicked people are hard to handle. Drewson’s takeoff seems like the act of a panicked person.” He studied her face, the expression on his serious. “You’re not going to panic, are you?” “Of course not.” She straightened her spine, irritated he would even ask. He squeezed her shoulder. “Good. I didn’t think so. Stay here, let me check the rest of the place, and then we’ll bring Sharmali in.” Moving so quietly she couldn’t hear his footsteps, Red left her. Meg sank onto the nearest chair, resting her head in her hands. If she and the people she was responsible for were in survival mode, even for a short time until someone sent help for them, she had to reprioritize her thoughts. By the time Red returned to the small lobby, she was on her feet, pacing, and making lists on her personal AI. “Nothing left behind but the furniture as far as I can see,” Red reported brusquely. There’s a big conference room or maybe it’s a dining room, and a small kitchen, couple of offices.” “Right. We’ll bring Sharmali in here, lay her on the couch. If you can’t get the power going, we can build a fire for tonight. The temperatures plummet after dark and the wind rises. There’s a fireplace in the conference room too, right?” He nodded. “Plenty of wood stacked out back. We can do the rustic thing. Maybe the guests will enjoy the novelty of camping out tonight.” “Hope so, as that’s their only choice. I think we leave the guests in blissful ignorance for now, until the Primary asks about missing the deadline for retrieval. It’ll dawn on them soon enough we’re marooned, if we truly are.” Meg checked his reaction. “Seem okay to you?” His calm face betrayed nothing. “Yes, Ma’am. But eventually they’re going to get upset. Especially the Primary, Mr. Finchon. He has a short fuse.” “He’s not in charge anymore, I am.” Meg dropped her AI into a handy pocket. “This is a survival situation and I’m the senior crew member.” She half expected him to protest, but his eyebrows lifted in mock surprise and he agreed with enthusiasm. “Yes, you are. And I’m here to back you to the hilt.” “Hey, what’s going on in there?” Bettis, the male passenger, peered into the lobby. “Can we bring Sharmali in or not?” “Yes, we’ve got a nice couch to put her on, make her comfortable.” Red moved to join him, saying to Meg in a low voice as he passed, “You and I need to talk more, later.” Red arranged Sharmali on the couch, Meg and Callina covering her with the large, soft beach towels. As she tucked the cloth over Sharmali’s shoulders, touching her clammy skin, Meg was alarmed by her condition. The woman was hypothermic and nearly unresponsive. The purple streaks had progressed beyond her knee into the fleshy thigh area on her injured leg when Meg checked.

74 “Whoa, the bite looks disgusting,” Bettis said over her shoulder. “And painful. Glad I didn’t go wading.” “If you and Mrs. Bettis can sit with her, Red and I need to supervise activities on the beach,” Meg said, ignoring his unspoken question. “Yell for me if there’s any change,” Red added “I’m no expert on bite wounds.” Doubt radiated from the man. “I just came along to be out of the sun,” Callina rubbed her bare shoulders. “I never had any first aid instructions or anything.” “If she gets agitated, or feverish, or if the appearance of the injury changes,” Meg said, forcing herself rein in her impatience. “Call us.” “Right.” Bettis dragged a chair next to the couch for himself and another for his wife, as Meg and Red departed. Not talking, the two of them crossed the landing pad and descended to the beach. To Meg’s relief, Mr. Finchon was seated, drinking a large glass of pure whiskey, judging from the translucent bronze color. As Meg approached, he stood, glaring at her, swirling the drink in the heavy crystal goblet. The other passengers gathered nearby, whispering to each other. “I’m going to start packing up here,” Meg said. “I’m pressing formal negligence charges against you both, as soon as we return to the ship,” their Primary guest said, voice quiet and deadly. “And suing the charter company. I’ll be transmitting the claims to Sector Hub immediately upon setting foot on the Far Horizon.” “Fine, you do whatever you think you need to do,” she answered, happy to hear how steady her voice sounded, despite the sinking sensation in her gut. “In the meantime, Mr. Thomsill and I have duties to attend to. Does anyone want another drink or a snack before I close the robos?” Trever, held up one hand. “Throw me another, but not that swill I endorse. I drink enough of that for the commercials.” He guffawed. Meg fished a high end premixed drink from the robo’s storage container and tossed it to the athlete underhanded. He snatched it from the air, reflexes not much diminished from his glory days on an All Sectors professional ball team. A few other people came forward and she and Red served them. Then the passengers drifted away for the most part. Meg turned her back to the lake and leaned toward Red. “The Primary’s going to be major trouble in about an hour, when the deadline passes with no shuttle arriving,” her fellow crew member said before she could utter a word. “Nothing I can’t handle easily, as long as the others stay scared sheep.” “I can help with crowd control.” She grabbed the bag she’d been guarding, setting it on her prep surface. He fingered the edge of the cleaning supplies label. “Why do I have hope you’re not talking about brushes and mops?” he said, moving closer, his body shielding them from casual view. Opening the bag in such a way as to conceal the contents, she showed him the blasters. “I grabbed these when I went to talk to Drewson.” As he palmed one, Red gave her an awestruck look. “Ma’am, my respect for you has climbed to a whole new level.” Efficiently, he checked the charge. His praise warmed her a bit and settled her nerves. “Taking the weapons was an impulse, but a good precaution, given how strangely the TDJ crew behaved. Don’t you want both of them?” “Do you know how to shoot?”

75 She nodded. “I’ve had the basic course.” “Then you keep the other. You’re in command here.” He slid his blaster into a deep side pocket of his utility pants. “I suggest we keep this advantage our secret until or unless we need to use them, okay?” “Okay.” Following his example, she dropped the second into the pocket of her own pants, sealing the flap. “Civilian pop guns,” he said, “But much, much better than bare fists.” “Is Sharmali going to die?” Meg voiced her biggest fear. Eyes steady on hers, he nodded once. “I used the only anti-venom inject in the kit already. You saw for yourself how ineffective the dose was. Even if we could get her to the ship in the next half hour, it might already be too late.” He touched her elbow lightly. “There’s nothing you can do about it. And stop beating yourself up over the sonic barrier in the lake. There was no way for you to know it was off. We all expected it to be on.” Meg disagreed about her own negligence, but now wasn’t the time to argue. Squaring her shoulders, she breathed in, counting to ten. Exhaling, she nodded. “Okay, in an hour, when the deadline passes, plus a margin for error, I’m gathering the group and telling them we believe we’re temporarily marooned. Then I want to put them to work. We’ll gather all the supplies, including what TDJ left, and we’ll move everything to the ranger building. It’ll be sunset in a few hours, and I think we’d better spend the night there, don’t you?” “Absolutely.” He gestured at the lake. “I assume we can drink this water?” “Some of the trace chemicals aren’t good for humans if we drank it for the rest of our lives, but yes, fine to consume over a short period of time.” “Lock the feelgoods in the bar robo now,” he suggested. “I’ll go do the same in the TDJ pavilion. Less chance of me having to shoot someone if we don’t let the situation degrade to where one or more people are drunk or high.” Eyeing the passengers, most of whom were in a tight circle, talking animatedly, he said, “Well, more inebriated than a couple of the men—Trever for one—already are.” “All right.” Shading her eyes with one hand, she observed her passengers, her responsibility. She noted with relief that the wandering Sam and Lindy had returned unharmed from their hike, and were the center of the excited circle as the others tried to talk over each other, telling the newcomers the unusual events they’d missed. “I hope at least a few of them are going to pull their own weight.” “People want to eat, they work. Simple as that.” Red jogged in the direction of the TDJ site. CHAPTER TWO Sharmali died in the middle of the night, quietly, never drawing another breath after one deep inhalation. Meg, who was in the chair next to the couch, drowsing, didn’t realize at first her passenger had died. The venom had worked its way through Sharmali’s entire body, turning all her veins and arteries a startling black and she’d been breathing shallowly for most of the evening. Meg briefly considered doing CPR, and decided there was no use, given the way the poison had affected the poor woman. Draping a beach towel over Sharmali’s face, Meg sat, head in her hands. There wasn’t any point in waking anyone else. Sharmali had no close friends among the passengers. Apparently, she and most of the other women had been hired by the Primary for entertainment thinly veiled as companionship during the cruise. The men were clients and business contacts of Mr. Finchon’s, with several of his high level employees along as backup, should any of the discussions delve into business. The Bettises, who’d helped with Sharmali earlier in the day, were the only married couple in the party. A few passengers had remained aboard the Far Horizon, declining the beach party adventure.

76 Meg glanced to where Mrs. Bettis slept next to her husband. She was Finchon’s stepdaughter from his first marriage. Her mother was deceased, but apparently the generational billionaire had promised his late wife to raise her. As Meg was contemplating what life must have been like for Callina, Red materialized out of the dark, coming inside the lodge from doing a patrol of the grounds. Glancing at the towel over the now deceased passenger’s face, he grimaced. He squatted next to Meg’s chair. “We’ll bury her in the morning,” he said, resting his hand on her arm for a moment. “You doing okay?” She nodded. “You should get some rest,” she whispered. “No worries, I’ll cat nap.” He rose, stretching from side to side. She caught his sleeve. “Are you expecting trouble tonight?” He hesitated. “Honestly? I don’t know what to expect. I do know the map in the ranger office shows sonic screens embedded to protect this whole place, which says to me there are land-based predators equivalent to the eel thing I killed earlier. And all of the defenses have been rendered inoperative, apparently during the withdrawal power-down when the rangers left.” “Could be native fauna worse than the eels,” she said, trying to remember details from previous visits. The company played down the dangers, for fear of scaring away passengers. The rangers kept the tourist site safe, or used to. “But I don’t mean the flora and fauna, I’m talking about why we’ve been marooned here, why our ship hasn’t returned for us.” Red’s answer wasn’t comforting. “All the things I can think of, based on my previous experience, would be your worst nightmares. Let’s just say for now I’m happier patrolling in the dark, and will be ecstatic when the sun rises.” “We were so busy late yesterday, you and I didn’t have time to talk privately, or make plans,” she said. “Yeah, we need to figure out our next move, where we go.” “What do you mean? Why can’t we stay here? This is where a rescue expedition will expect to find us.” Meg wrinkled her brow, trying to comprehend his intentions. “We’ve got good shelter—we can even open the houses with your special access code. There are edible fish in the lake to supplement my stores, fresh water, all the amenities.” Trever, sprawled atop a stack of beach towels on the floor nearby, rolled over groggily. “Will you two please take it somewhere else so a guy can get some sleep?” “Sorry, buddy.” Red extended his hand to Meg. “Got any real coffee in those robos?” “Of course.” Realizing there was nothing else she could do for Sharmali, she allowed him to draw her to her feet. He led her through the sleeping passengers into the hall and to the kitchen at the rear of the building. Earlier, he’d found a few emergency lamps left in a cupboard, so he flipped one on, setting it on the counter as she activated the robo to brew coffee. “We’re marooned now, so there is no crew versus passenger,” she said. “All consumables are share and share alike at my discretion.” “All right then, as long as no one is docking my pay.” He took the mug with a laugh. “I’ve missed the real stuff since I left the Teams. Special Forces gets their own allotment. Too pricey to drink much in my new civilian life.” She acknowledged the shared joke from yesterday with a raised eyebrow, and sipped her coffee, but refused to be distracted. “Talk to me. Why are you urging me to move these people somewhere else? And where would we go?” He leaned against the counter. “We can assume whatever reason the TDJ captain had for leaving was compelling.”

77 She nodded. “And no sign of Drewson returning.” He sipped the hot drink. “The two facts together suggest to me our ship is gone.” “Gone? You mean jumped into hyperspace?” “Could be.” He paused. Meg thought he seemed to be struggling with some inner decision whether to share more of his concerns, so she waited. After a moment, Red said, “The Far Horizon could have been destroyed by hostiles.” “An enemy incursion in this Sector?” Meg blinked, trying to assimilate the concept. “Last time I heard any news, the Mawreg were at least two Sectors away, and being pushed back all along the front.” “I don’t have any current intel, been out of the Teams too long, but the government never tells civilians the full story about anything.” He shook his head. “The fact that the rangers were pulled out of here says a lot to me. And the Mawreg don’t usually come in first. The overlords prefer to send one of their client races; the cannon fodder do the heavy lifting of first invasion.” Mind reeling with grim possibilities she’d never considered, Meg pounced on a hole in his logic. “But why attack this planet? It’s got no value other than the scenic beauties. No indigenous population. No particularly valuable minerals, despite the pretty colors they add to the water and the tree leaves. Nothing special here to covet.” He drained the last drop of the precious coffee and set the mug on the counter. “I found some kind of research station on one of the maps in the ranger office. Maybe this world has more to it than we know.” This was certainly news to Meg. “Was the research station active? Maybe the staff there can help—” “Mothballed several years ago according to the note, but it would make a good place for us to wait out our forced shore leave. It’s deep in the forest, probably several days walk from here.” “I don’t understand why you want us to hike through the undergrowth to reach another abandoned place like this station,” Meg said. “Why not stay here in relative comfort?” “If hostiles are planning to take over this planet, the landing pad and ranger station are visible and vulnerable, too exposed. I’d have preferred to start for the research complex this afternoon, but the idea wasn’t workable with the bunch of pampered civilians we’ve got. When we move out, I’ll take or destroy all the maps or references here showing our potential destination. We’ll be able to hide there. Once I get you and the others safely established at the site, I’ll come back to this area and keep a covert watch for a rescue or the resumption of normal civilian traffic. My best hope is there might be active coms gear at the station so we can call for extraction.” Meg took a shaky breath. “What you’re saying makes me want to wake the passengers now and move out in the dark.” Red laid his hand over hers on the counter. “Hey, I’m probably overreacting. Even if hostiles took out the two ships, or were sighted in the vicinity of the system, the enemy might not have any interest in searching for a few stray humans on the surface.” Drawing comfort from his touch, she allowed the contact between them for a moment before withdrawing her hand. Needing to do something with all the nervous energy after this unsettling discussion, she set about packing the robo. “Tell me something, are you normally given to overreacting?” She shot him a glance over her shoulder. “No.” His answer was what she’d expected. “All right then, let’s plan to get organized and hike out of here by noon. I anticipate some serious complaints and foot dragging from the guests, don’t you?”

78 “We’ll tell them the truth. And again, the food goes with us, so if the passengers don’t relish hunting for their own—” “Which this crowd is highly unlikely to do.” She laughed, guessing he was trying to lighten the atmosphere. As he turned to exit the galley, she said, “Hey, Red?” “Yeah?” Turning to her, he cocked his head as if he expected some criticism. “I’m glad you’re here with me.” Smiling, he flashed her a sketchy salute. The guests were a quiet, cowed bunch when Meg woke them at dawn. Serving a bare minimum of food for breakfast, she announced the need for a burial detail to inter poor Sharmali, whose body Red had carried into one of the side offices after their late night chat. The Primary sat in a corner of the conference room, away from the others, Callina fetching food for him. Chewing on a feelgood stick, he scowled, but said nothing. “Mr. Thomsill and I believe we need to relocate further inland, to another facility we’ve identified, for our safety,” Meg launched into her agenda for their day after all the passengers had plates and were devouring the food she’d measured out. “We’ll start hiking there today. After breakfast and the service for Sharmali, I’ll need help dividing the supplies into makeshift packs.” The expected uproar took place, with people throwing questions and accusations alike at her. Oddly enough, Mr. Finchon quelled the discussion before Red had to intervene. The Primary stood and his entourage went quiet as if he’d yelled at them. “I’m taking detailed notes on all of this, for my eventual lawsuit, which I guarantee is going to drive your employer into bankruptcy and ruin the two of you financially for the rest of your lives. You’ll never work again, I assure you both.” He raised one hand as Red opened his mouth. “Let me finish, Mr. Thomsill. I only want to say this once. I agree with your logic about moving to a less visible location, in case our difficulties of the moment are due to hostile action. Speaking on behalf of my guests and my employees, we’ll co-operate with you to the full extent until help arrives.” He sat and there was silence for a moment. “All right then,” Meg said, “As soon as breakfast is over, the burial detail goes with Mr. Thomsill and the rest help me pack.” “You guys go ahead and I’ll be right out.” Red lingered for a moment, stepping close to Meg. Lowering his voice so only she could hear, he said, “Don’t lose any sleep over that blowhard’s threats. Clearly the situation here falls outside normal cruise conditions and anything he tries to file a lawsuit over will get blown out of court. Force majeure and all the old Terran legalese.” Appreciating his concern, she relaxed her tense shoulders and gave him a smile. “Thanks for the reminder. I did know he was blowing smoke, but if thinking about ways to sue us keeps him co-operative, I’m content.” “I should’ve known you’d be on top of it.” Red squeezed her elbow and was gone. But when she stepped outside with the others later, braced to say a few words over the grave since she was in command, Meg paused on the threshold and scanned the sky. “Problem?” Red was at her side. She realized she was getting used to him being there when she needed him. The idea was more comforting than she would have believed possible a few days ago. Pointing with her chin, she said, “See those gray clouds, low on the horizon?” He followed her line of sight and whistled. “Big storm coming. We were tracking some nasty cells when we landed, but the prevailing winds were blowing out to sea.” “Must have been a shift in the weather then because we’re definitely in for it. My landing party was caught

79 here in a freak storm three years ago. It was so bad we couldn’t launch. We had to sit it out in the ranger station. Blew for twelve of the longest hours of my life.” She didn’t add that storms freaked her out, ever since she was a kid. “On the positive side, we know the ranger station can withstand the winds,” he said. “But we’ll never survive in the open. We can’t leave today.” Meg was surprised to find how much she wanted to get away from the vulnerable facility. “Well, if the weather’s going to be as bad as you’re telling me, no one’s going to attack us today, either.” The passengers were assembled, so she walked to the flower bed in front of the first small house, which Red had determined was the best spot. Taking a deep breath to calm the fluttering in her gut as she stood by the freshly dug grave, Meg said, “None of us present knew Sharmali Dalgien as anything but a fellow traveler. I’ve been told she was a good companion, a pleasant person to be with and she didn’t deserve to perish here, in such a sad manner. May the Lords of Space speed her on her way and grant her peace.” “Peace,” her audience echoed. One or two bowed their heads, praying to their own deities. Lindy, the girl whose face Sharmali had scratched during their spat in the shuttle the day before, wept noisily, although her sobs sounded forced to Meg. Callina placed hastily plucked wildflowers at the head of the grave. Harrelly recited a short speech from one of his recent trideo roles, where he’d played a priest in some mythological religion. He took a bow at the end, seeming disappointed no one asked for more. Meg remembered his character had been long-winded in the entertainment feature and supposed they were lucky he gave them one of the briefer, more or less relevant passages. Much to Meg’s surprise, Callina sang, doing a surprisingly professional a capella rendition of a popular ballad. The haunting lyrics about a journey and lost love resonated well for the somber occasion. There was applause when she finished the last verse, and then the mourners’ attention turned to Meg and Red for direction. “We can’t leave today after all,” she said, explaining about the oncoming storm. Just in the time of the brief ceremony, the ominous cloud bank had advanced noticeably closer and a breeze was picking up and eddying the leaves in the yard. “Mr. Thomsill is going to button up the storm shutters pretty soon. For safety reasons, it’s essential no one remains outside. We will be setting out promptly at dawn tomorrow, so rest today as much as you can.” Meg tried to prepare them for what the storm would be like, but the ferocity of the winds far exceeded her ability to describe. Lindy became practically catatonic, curled in a chair in the middle of the room, her head covered with a towel, crooning to herself and cringing at the bursts of thunder. The others napped, played desultory card games with the decks Meg had brought on the ill-fated picnic the day before, or else amused themselves with their personal AI’s. Callina and her husband sat curled up together on a couch against the far wall, probably happy that while the storm raged, her stepfather couldn’t make demands of either one. The sturdily built ranger station rocked under the most ferocious gusts, but despite creaking and groaning, the walls and roof stayed intact. There was no conversation because it was impossible to be heard over the howling winds. Meg served lunch when her wrist chrono indicated it was time to eat, and brought dinner later. At least there was no worry over food and drink yet, between her stores and what TDJ had left behind. She fed the crowd a bit extra, hoping the treat would give their spirits a boost. The Primary played cards with Trever and Harelly for the most part, but occasionally she’d glance up from the book she was merely staring at on her AI, not really reading, and discover Finchon was fixated on her. Eyes glittering, he watched her every move. Finally, she relocated to the kitchen and sat alone. Red checked on her at regular intervals, as he prowled the entire building, on the alert for anything.

80 He’d been unable to restore full power to the station, telling her the day before several vital parts were missing, apparently removed when the place was abandoned. An independent auxiliary system kept the locks, storm shutters and limited ventilation operational. Eventually the storm blew itself out, as she’d known it would, but not before there was a crash at the rear of the building that literally shook the ground. Heart pounding, she remembered there’d been an old growth tree shading the station, which evidently had failed to weather one more storm. Lucky it didn’t land on the roof or we’d all be dead. As the winds faded in intensity toward evening, she walked into the conference room to check on her passengers. While distributing snacks, she said, “We should be fine now, since the storm is blowing further inland, away from us. Get some sleep and be ready to leave first thing in the morning.” She spent a few moments conversing with Lindy, the woman who’d had such a terrified reaction to the storm, bringing her a cup of tea. After making sure no one else required any special attention, Meg gave Red permission to open the storm shutters on the windows because the ventilation system wasn’t working too well and the air had grown stuffy inside the building. He ventured outside and reported there was a great deal of debris on the ground from the winds. The large tree had indeed fallen against the rear of the station, but overall the situation was good. The night passed without incident. Meg woke at dawn and set out a buffet breakfast, Callina and Red assisting her. As the passengers ate, she said, “I’m going to get a head start on shutting down my robos. We’ll be leaving as soon as everyone’s done eating breakfast.” “Do you need help?” Red was always attentive. Callina crammed the remainder of her stale sandwich into her mouth, mumbling something about wanting to pitch in with the chores. “Don’t rush, no need to choke on your food,” Meg said with a smile. “We’ve had enough emergencies for one trip. This is routine, done it a million times, but thanks for the offer of help, both of you. It’ll take me five minutes or less, promise.” Advertisement

Dark Horse (Michelle Diener) Release Date: June 15th 2015 Publisher: Self Price: $4.99 Formats: Kindle, ePub URLs:

Michelle Diener's website | Buy the book on Amazon | Michelle Diener on Twitter Chapter One Rose slipped her ticket out of hell over her head and tucked it beneath her shirt, where it lay against her skin, throbbing like a heartbeat. The sensation was so unnerving, she curled her fingers around it and lifted it back out, eyeing the clear crystal oblong uncertainly. “I'll try to keep all the passageways clear for you and 've disabled the lenses, but just in case someone disobeys orders, it would be better if they didn't see me.” Sazo spoke too loudly through the tiny earpiece she wore, and she winced. She reluctantly tucked the crystal, that was somehow also Sazo, back under her shirt, tugging the cord it hung from so it was below her neckline. After three months of being the only thing she'd had to wear, washed over and over again, the shirt was threadbare, and barely concealed Sazo anyway, but it was better than nothing. She took the two steps to the door of the tiny control room at the very heart of the Tecran ship and it slid silently open. She'd only been inside for ten minutes at most to steal Sazo, or break him out, depending on your view of things, and the corridor was as empty now as it had been when Sazo led her here. She looked back, but the door had closed, completely concealing the control room, so it looked like an uninterrupted passageway again. “You're still in control, even though I've unplugged you?” She spoke very quietly, because even though Sazo had opened doors, and diverted traffic all the way from her prison cell to this room earlier, there was no point taking foolish chances like talking too loudly when it was unnecessary. “I would not have initiated this plan if I wasn't absolutely certain that it would work.” Sazo sounded a little . . . stressed. “You okay?” “There has been a delay loading the animals at the launch bay and the Grih have come through their light jump three minutes sooner than I calculated.” He went quiet for a moment. “I'm sorry, Rose.” “What? What is it?” Freezing hands of panic gripped her heart and she stumbled to a halt. If he was going to tell her they had to abort, that she had to go back to the cell . . . “The lion has been killed.” She leant against the wall, her legs weak. “That is not good.” She rubbed her face. “Why?” “I'll tell you as you walk. We can't delay, with the Grih already here. They might fire on this ship at any time when they realize it's disabled.” She started walking again, and just like earlier, the passages Sazo sent her down were eerily empty. “I thought the Grih were peaceful.”

82 “They don't take force as a first option, but my changing this ship's trajectory in the last light jump and setting us in the middle of Grih territory was effectively a declaration of war. They might initially hesitate to fire, given the power of this ship compared to theirs, but when they realize every single system except for lights, air, and the launch bay mechanisms have been disabled, they may strike.” “And the lion?” There was something bothering her about the way he'd apologized. “It was delaying the loading——frightening the loading crew. They're already frightened because I diverted the ship to this location and they don't know what's going on. I only agreed to let the animals come with us because you insisted. Animals are unpredictable. It's hard to get the timing precise.” “You instructed one of the loaders to kill the lion.” She didn't ask, it was a statement of fact. She knew there had been something way off with that apology. She knew, deep down, there was something way off about Sazo, but he was literally her only escape route, and of all the beings she had encountered since her abduction, the only one who had worked to free her. “There is a chance the wildlife on the moon we're going to, Harmon, would not have been suitable to sustain him. He would eventually have died of starvation.” She didn't respond. She was too angry. What he said may be true, and if so, he could have told her that sooner, but it wouldn't have stopped her asking for all the animals to go with them on a second shuttle. They had had as miserable a time as she in this hellhole. And Sazo thought the Grih would come to pick her up on the moon they were escaping to. They would see the shuttles Sazo had arranged for them leaving the launch bay for Harmon, and after they had dealt with the crippled Tecran ship, they would surely be interested in who had escaped. And, she was sure, be interested in a lion. They could have made a plan for him. A door slid open and she walked into the launch bay. Ahead of her, two of the loading staff walked out the far door without turning around, one nursing a jagged wound on his arm. She pressed against the wall and made no move until the doors closed behind them and she was alone in the massive hangar. Beside her, she heard the hum and double beep of the locks engaging. Sazo had sealed the doors. No one on the ship could stop her getting on the shuttle now. The lion lay, dead and crumpled, in the massive cage that had housed him since he was taken. It stood next to one of the two explorer shuttles she and Sazo were stealing and she walked up to it and grasped hold of the bars. Hot tears welled in her eyes as she looked down on him. He was a golden, vibrant anachronism in this cold, metallic place. A wild thing, broken. That could have been her. Nearly had been, more than once. The lion had been one of the things that had kept her going, kept her sane. “I am sorry, Rose. I really am. But the Grih have gone to full alert, shields and guns. Please get in the shuttle, or this could be for nothing.” The shuttle that had been loaded with all the animals was closed and ready. Rose paused for a moment, looking at the massive gel wall that enclosed the launch bay but which allowed ships in and out. It was a pale blue, and seemed to shimmer. “Rose!”

83 She shook herself, and walked up the ramp into the much smaller craft Sazo had arranged for her, and before she had even reached the cabin, he started closing the door and revving the engines. She lurched into one of only two chairs in the small cockpit and struggled with the safety harness. She should have been excited, or at least relieved to finally have escaped the Tecran, but as the engines began their muffled scream and the ship lifted into hover mode, she could only think of tawny fur and golden eyes. Closed forever. *** The Tecran Class 5 battleship hung sullenly between the Barrist and one of the fertile moons of the gas giant Virmana. It hulked like a prickly black ball, and Dav Jallan shifted uncomfortably in the Barrist's captain's chair. He could feel the tension humming off his ten-strong command staff, although they were trying to hang on to calm. Their emergence from a light jump deep inside their own territory to find themselves within sight of a Tecran ship was not unlike opening the door expecting to see a friend, and tripping over a weapon-wielding thug instead. Dav decided they'd been frozen in shock long enough, himself included. “Is there anyone on board?” That was almost the only logical reason why the Tecran hadn't fired on them yet. Their ship was three times the size of the Barrist, and Dav knew from the information he received from Battle Center that a rare Class 5 like the one in front of him had even more than that in terms of fire power. “There are at least five hundred heartbeats, sir.” Kila said. She tapped a screen and immediately the view of the battleship on the main screen in front of them lit up with hundreds of lights on clearly defined levels. Most of them were blue but . . . “Are those orange lights?” Dav leant forward to get a better look. They were all concentrated in the same area, set apart from the blue, which was the only reason they were noticeable at all. “Those are bio-signatures our system can't identify.” Kila said, and frowned. “This is the first time I've ever come across a genuine orange before.” “Should I initiate evacuation?” Dav's aide, Farso Lothric, hovered at his shoulder, his hands clenching and unclenching. “Where would we go?” Dav didn't need to look at his systems screen to know they couldn't possibly have recovered enough from the light jump they'd just made to go anywhere. Let alone evade a Tecran Class 5 battleship. And while the moon behind the Tecran ship shone like a blue and green jewel against the red and cream of Virmana's patterned atmosphere, and was assuredly habitable, the problem still remained that they would have to go around the Tecran ship to get to it. “We have to do something,” Lothric said. Dav didn't disagree. However, he'd known the moment they'd come out of the jump and straight on course toward the Tecran ship that there was only one course of action. They had sent out a comm the moment they'd made visual contact, and at least two battle class ships would be light jumping to the Barrist's aid, but right now, all they could do was defend. “Shields are at full. Guns are all primed. If they attack——” At that moment, all the lights on the Tecran ship went out. The blue and orange heartbeats remained, but it was clear the power was down. “The oranges, sir.” Kila stood up in her excitement, and forgot to use the pointer, using her finger instead. The orange heartbeats detached from the ship, and Dav zoomed in with the lens, saw two explorer-class craft flying away from their mother ship.

84 “Is one empty?” Borji, his systems engineer, asked, peering forward. “No. There's one orange heartbeat on that one. Six on the other.” Dav watched their trajectory for a minute longer, but there was nowhere else to go but Virmana's moon——not in those craft——and he turned his attention back to the real threat. “Could they be on backup power and we can't see it?” He waited for Kila to fiddle with her instrumentation. She shook her head. “I can't see any power at all.” “Which means . . .” Lothric gripped the back of Dav's chair. “Which means we have a ship full of dying Tecran in front of us.” Dav stood. Walked toward the screen. He would give a lot to know what was going on in that Tecran ship right now. It was like someone had just handed them a Class 5 warship on a plate, with no effort on their part to claim it besides a bit of messy clean-up. He didn' trust that at all. No one in the universe was that kind. He tapped his communicator. “Commander Appal, ready Squads A to F, and prepare to board the Tecran vessel immediately. Full biohazard kit.” He paused. “I'm coming with you.” Chapter Two “You can move around now.” This time, Sazo's voice was much softer in her ear. Rose depressed the button over her chest, and the safety harness released, letting her up to stand in the tiny cabin. She walked to the porthole window and looked back, saw the outside of her prison for the first time. The Tecran ship was a black ball with long protrusions. Like a naval contact mine from the Second World War. She shuddered to see it. “You did what I asked you? You deleted the maps?” “I've wiped the Tecran system of all navigation points to Earth, and was able to send a system virus to all their other vessels, to search out the information and destroy it wherever else it exists in the Tecran fleet. They won't even know it's missing, because I also deleted all reports relating to their find. With the crew that took you gone, only those in the high command office who read the reports will have any idea of what they found, and they won't be able to find the information again.” “What do you mean, with the crew gone?” Rose stared out at the Tecran ship a moment longer. “The Grih won't return the Tecran to their people as prisoners of war? What will they do with them?” She tried to tamp down on a wish for something truly unpleasant. Sazo paused. “I am not familiar with the Grih's handling of prisoners of war. When we make contact with them and I can infiltrate their system, I can keep watch on the Tecran they're holding. But either way, it won't matter. The Tecran will have to start again from scratch.” It was the most she could hope for. “But you still have the information, right?” She didn't know whether she wanted him to delete it from his memory or not. Having it there meant there was a tiny chance of going home. “I do. But I've put it somewhere extremely hard to find. If the Tecran ever get me again, it will not be accessible to them.”

85 She would have to believe that. She decided not to ask him to delete the maps permanently yet. If they were about to be taken back into the Tecran fold, then maybe. But not now. “Does this craft have a hot shower?” She was half-joking, half-hoping beyond hope as she took her first really good look around the craft. Her skin hadn't felt clean since she'd been taken. Sazo had engineered a respite for her from half-way through her second month of captivity onward, but she'd only had a basin to wash in. She wanted water pouring down on her. “It does,” Sazo said, and she closed her eyes, suddenly close to tears. “I had the loading crew pack some things that may be useful to you.” He sounded almost shy as he opened an automatic door at the back of the cabin. It slid completely back on itself, and Rose crouched down and pulled out two bags. They were the size of small backpacks and after a little fiddling, she worked out she had to push a button at the top and the center seam released, opening up to reveal piles of colorful fabric and bottles of what might be toiletries. She lifted up a piece of fabric, to find it was a large long-sleeved t-shirt made of a smooth fabric with the texture of silk. It looked much to big, but she could deal with that. “It's hyr fabric,” Sazon said into her ear. “Made from the silk of the hyr spider. It reacts to heat. Hyr spiders only eat prey with a certain body temperature. If the correct prey gets stuck on their web, the silk contracts around it. You put it on and your body heat causes it to shrink to fit you. You can shape it any way you like.” “I don't recognize it from anything I saw the Tecran wear. This is wonderful.” She brushed her fingers over it, and felt it react to the heat of her fingertips. The Tecran had worn uniforms of a dark purple which had looked similar to thick cotton——practical and hardy. This was soft and beautiful. “Thank you.” “Hyr fabric is the most expensive fabric in this part of the galaxy. I saw in the inventory that we were carrying these two packs for the daughter of the Tecran military leader, and had them pulled from the cargo hold and packed in this shuttle.” That meant he had thought of her and what she would need well in advance. He had been honest in his promise that he would help her, and on top of that, beyond the bargain, he had thought of her comfort. He had also killed the lion. She needed to remember there were a lot of shades of gray in Sazo. And if she ever slowed down his plan, there was a chance, just like the lion, she'd become so much collateral damage. She lifted the crystal off her neck and looked at it. “That was really sweet of you. Thank you again. Now, I'm going to find the shower, and when all the hot water is gone, I'm going to work out how to dress myself in hyr fabric.” She started to pull the earpiece from her ear. “Wait.” Sazo's call was a squawk. She put the earpiece back in. “Yes?” “It would take one hour and thirty minutes for the hot water to be gone. We only have an hour before you need to be back in the harness for landing.” “Can you send me a signal when forty minutes is up? Like a beep through the comm system?” She had nearly said intercom, but even though she spoke in English, a language she had taught Sazo since he'd first introduced himself, she stopped herself in time and used the Grih term. She could speak relatively understandable Tecran by now, and almost fluent Grih. They had decided it was better for her to concentrate on Grih, rather than Tecran, given the plan was to escape the Tecran, and never meet up with them again. Ever.

86 She pulled the earpiece out and put it and the crystal——she couldn't think of that faceted, slim piece of technology as Sazo——on top of the storage unit. It was the first time she'd been free of Sazo completely, apart from when she slept, for at least a month and a half. Not since he'd had someone include the earpiece on the breakfast tray a guard brought her each morning. She grabbed both of the packs he'd got her and slung them over her shoulder as she made for the rear cabin door, eager to find out what lay beyond it. A kitchen galley to the left, a small bathroom to the right, it turned out. This really was a two-person explorer. But she wasn't complaining. She stepped into the bathroom, and then, even though Sazo could hardly get up and walk in, given he was an artificial intelligence lodged in a crystal key, she closed the door. Of course, he would also, by now, be residing in the systems of this craft. She looked around, but couldn't see a camera, and what would she do about it, if she could? She pulled off her clothes, folding them neatly to one side, because she had learned to take nothing for granted, and she may need them again, and then stepped into the shower. The Tecran were a little taller than humans and a lot bulkier, so the shower stall was roomy for her. She worked out how to switch it on, and stepped back for a couple of seconds to let it come up to temperature, only to find it came out hot straight away. As soon as the spray hit her face, she closed her eyes, tilted her head back, and at last, private and under cover of the sound of falling water, let herself cry. Advertisement

Mavim (Sam Cheever) Release Date: May 4, 2015 Publisher: Electric Prose Publications Available Formats: MOBI, PDF, EPUB Price: $2.99 URLs:

Sam Cheever's website | Sam Cheever on Facebook | Sam Cheever on Twitter CHAPTER ONE Mavim AgDurness closed his eyes and set his jaw against the ravening blood lust. His stomach growled its need, the muscles around it tightening as it twisted hungrily. He’d gone longer and longer without taking sustenance of late, so the debilitating hunger had become a nearly constant companion over his months on the primitive planet. Though the surface of the thriving alien planet called Earth was covered in walking, talking edibles, snacking from them was like eating nothing but mealfollows. All empty calories and no real sustenance. Mavim snacked only when his body absolutely demanded it. And then only quickly, in the dark, with such a sense of revulsion he could barely keep the blood from boiling back up and spewing out on his shoes. Always when he fed, he would see her face. So pale, so perfect. It was his undoing. For Mavim, no other female would do. None could take her place. So he suspected he would simply fade away over time, as was the Sangui way of dying. And be launched into the sky for his final journey to Maja, protector of souls. Then his pain would finally end. The comm unit spat sparks and sound flared briefly from it. Mavim’s head snapped up in surprise and crashed against the underside of the console. He swore in several intergalactic languages and pushed out from under the console, grabbing his tools as he moved into the open. The ship’s communications had been fried when they crossed the atmospheric barriers to Earth, and he’d been trying to get them working again for months, scavenging resources from other parts of the ship and trying to repurpose things he’d managed to locate on Earth. It had been long since the Sangui had heard from others of their kind. Though only a relative few had managed to escape the dying planet Sanguinoss, the small band of elite vampires living on Earth were keenly aware of the existence of others who’d escaped before the infection took them down. And even more keenly aware of those who hadn’t managed to escape. The lights on the comm flared to life and a blurry figure appeared briefly before snapping into blackness again. It had spun too quickly through the visual cogs within the unit to be recognizable, but Mavim had been able to tell it was a woman. Lights flared again. The same shape, slightly clearer this time, exploded onto the screen. “Mav...” Renegade star spikes ate the rest of the transmission, turning the words she spoke to a garbled mash. But Mavim had heard enough to make his pulse jump. He dropped his tools and slammed a hand over the comm, quickly adjusting levers until the image he’d seen flashed past again and then snapping a lock on the transmission before it could fitz away. The pale oval staring back at him was marred by filth. The rich mahogany brown of her curls lank with oil. But the lush, cranberry lips were unmistakable. The soft lilt of her bedroom voice distinctive. Mavim had heard it every night in his dreams since he’d risked life and future to place her mangled form inside a

88 burial capsule and send her on her final passage to Maja. “Mav… Help… Gleschutions have tak…” And there the transmission faded away, leaving behind only the terrified gaze of the woman he loved above all else. And the horrifying realization that she was in danger. And that she’d risked everything to try to get word to him. Mavim touched the screen, tracing it with a shaky finger as tears slipped hot and unnoticed down his cheeks. Blood tears. Tears of deep, unending agony. Then the comm blinked out again and her visage was ripped from his sight. Mavim threw back his head and roared, mad with the agony of her loss. Yet again. ~M~ Fania Sa crouched in front of the bars, her dirt-encrusted fingers clutching it for support as she strained to see the guards several cells down. “What are they doing to him?” She snapped a quick look toward her cellmate. “Shhh.” The other woman paced behind Fania, her emaciated features pinched into a terrified frown. “He must be all right. He must be.” Fania expelled a frustrated breath. If the woman didn’t stop yapping… “You there! Get back!!” Fania’s head shot up and she frowned at the pig-faced alien ambling toward her, his thick tail scraping the dirt behind him. “You do not see me here.” The alien stopped, blinking, and looked toward the back of the cell. The other woman dropped to a hard cot alongside the wall, going perfectly still. The alien’s bulgy black eyes narrowed, moisture seeping from its flat nose, and its nostrils flared. Fania knew it wouldn’t be able to smell them because she’d covered them both with oily feces she’d snatched from beyond the bars. Gleschutions had such a strong, pervasive odor they were unable to smell anything else beyond their own stench. “You will interrupt the guard down the way. The high master calls to you.” The stupid creature blinked rapidly several times and then barked out a guttural command in its own language. Fania smiled. As a Royal Princess in the Order of Sanguinoss, she’d been taught the language of her enemies at her mother’s knee from a very young age. She only wished she’d learned much sooner how to use her special energies to confuse the disgusting creatures and bend them to her will. It would have made her first few months imprisoned on Gleschute much more pleasant. The guards shuffled away down the passage and Fania’s cellmate leapt to her feet. “They’ll be back when they realize they weren’t summoned.” Fania pulled a twisted chunk of metal from her pocket and, reaching through the bars, inserted it into the lock

89 and turned. The lock snicked open and she moved into the passage. The woman, Keenie, pressed herself against the bars. “Tell me he is fine?” Fania touched the other woman’s fingers, which were twined so tightly around the bars they were white. They felt like ice beneath Fania’s touch. “Hold faith, sister.” She hurried toward the distant cell, where the Gleschution guard had been torturing a Sanguinoss blood slave under the false charge that the man had stolen bread from the larder when they’d been let out of their cells for work detail. She found the man lying in the middle of his dirt-floored prison, his back covered in raised, bloody welts. Fania swore, determined that, if she ever found a way off that stench filled, vermin-ridden planet she would blow it up behind her. Kneeling down next to the unconscious man, she lifted her wrist to her mouth and bit into it. As rich, dark Sangui blood rose up out of the tiny bites, she held the wrist to the man’s mouth and, touching his temple with a finger, willed him to drink. Moments later she forced her arm from his lips as he returned to consciousness. The man’s eyes snapped open and he groaned, his hand going to his head. “Dammed pigs.” Fania patted his arm. “I’ll tell Keenie you are fine.” The man grabbed her hand, kissed the back. “Thanks to you, my princess. May the stars bless you until Maja welcomes you to her bosom.” “Thank you Aloc.” She stood slowly, forcing her lips shut on the groan of weariness that threatened. It wouldn’t do to let her people know how weak she was becoming. Her constant care, the refusal to eat so they could survive, was taking its toll on her. “I’ll see if the guards left any scraps behind.” The man pushed to his feet, shaking his head. “Give them to Keenie. Or the weaker ones. I am enriched by your gift. I need no other sustenance for a while.” She touched his arm and left the cell, locking it behind her. Fania hurried to the guard’s station and grabbed two loaves of hard bread and some meat scraps, handing them through the bars to her ravenous subjects as fast as she could go. But it wasn’t fast enough. She hadn’t quite made it back to her cell when she heard the shuffle of big, pig feet along the passage. Dizziness swamped her. Fania scrubbed a hand over her brow and leaned against the wall for just a moment, knowing it was risky but unable to move with the room spinning around her. She would just use her mind magics when the pigs arrived. But it wasn’t to be. “What have we got here, princess?” Her heart thumped hard against her ribs at the sound of his voice. She focused her gaze on the tall, dark haired man standing before the two Gleschution guards. His black eyes gleamed. She’d given him exactly what he wanted. She’d been caught disobeying. A treasonous offense on the maggot-infested planet. She shook her head as dizziness turned to fog and her legs bent out from beneath her. She knew she was falling. But she never hit the ground. A strong, unwelcome pair of arms caught her before she could fall.

90 CHAPTER TWO “Mavim, you’ve lost your mind.” He threw another pair of the useful Earth trou made of the stiff blue fabric into his bag and reached for his boots. “You aren’t going to talk me out of this, Kai. I’m going after her.” His friend expelled a frustrated breath, his dark face clearly showing his concern. “You don’t even know if the ship is safe to fly. And you can’t pilot it into Gleschute airspace by yourself.” “I’ll be fine. The ship is still fully armed. We didn’t need to fire a single shot coming into Earth’s atmosphere.” And he still couldn’t believe it. What a singularly lackadaisical species Earthmen were. “I’m going to land on the Void side and cross to the Wallow from there.” “You’re going to cross half the planet all by yourself? How do you propose to get into the prisons? And what if she’s not there?” Mavim threw a box of dried meals into the bag with his clothes and several tubes of water. Kai glanced past his determined friend to the man leaning against the door frame, long arms crossed over his chest. The oldest of the Earth-bound Sangui, Yvan’s word generally held more weight than the others. “Help me out here, Yvan. You know he’s going to his death.” The elder Sangui slid a neutral gaze to Kai. “He’s going after the woman he loves. You don’t really think he’ll listen to reason?” “Finally! Someone speaks sense.” Mavim dropped his bag over his shoulder and turned toward the door. Yvan didn’t exactly move in front of the door. Not really. But somehow his big body covered the opening anyway. “You do realize those transmissions you heard were probably from months ago.” Mavim frowned. “What are you saying?” Yvan shrugged. “They probably bounced around the universe for a while, getting waylaid by a dozen or so black holes. There really is no way to know how long the message has been out there or where it originated.” Mavim’s temper eased upward a notch. He tried to step around the elder. Somehow Yvan was still in front of him. “You don’t even know they’ve taken her to Gleschute.” “I do. I am certain.” Yvan stared into Mavim’s eyes for a long moment and then nodded. “Fine. I’m going with you.” Mavim opened his mouth to argue. “This is not up to discussion. We will stop by Sanguinoss after we rescue Fania.” Mavim’s eyes grew wide. “You wish to search for survivors?” Yvan’s gaze darkened briefly, brittle with pain. “Yes.” Mavim considered only a moment longer. His chances of saving Fania were much greater if he had Yvan by his side. For one thing, they could land their ship much closer to the palace in Wallow. He nodded. “We leave in one hour. As soon as I do the final check of systems and comms.” Yvan inclined his head and Mavim suddenly had open air before him. But behind him, as he hurried toward the wing of the warehouse where they kept the Sanguinoss Star, the air soon became blue. It seemed Kai wasn’t happy with Yvan and Mavim’s plans. ~M~

91 Fania jerked out of the grasp of the pig-faced woman trying to dunk her into the fragrant pool. “Leave me!” She fumed helplessly as the two Gleschution slaves laughed, the sound like a series of rumbling barks. The one who’d been holding her arm grabbed it again and shoved, sending her sprawling into the flower-strewn water. Fania went under, bumped her elbow on the step formed of rock, and hit the bottom hard, skinning her knees. Ignoring the pain, she shoved off and threw herself onto her feet, exploding from the water with a rage-filled growl. Her alpha roared beneath her skin, turning the world to dark everywhere except the small area where the pig-faced slave stood, laughing at the treatment she’d doled out to the hated royal from Sanguinoss. The dim-witted creature was about to discover her mistake. Fania embraced her alpha and was suddenly on top of the thick-skinned bitch, carrying her to the floor. The slave landed with an “umph” and her big, ugly hands came up to push Fania from her chest. Unfortunately Fania was no longer in residence. Her alpha had taken full control and its rage at her treatment, added to the months of deprivation and worry in the prison caverns, had warped its feral mind to the point that nothing would save the slave. Fania’s vision pulsed silvery-green, the terrified snout of the unfortunate slave its focus. Her fangs pressed through the soft skin of her bottom lip, throbbing with the need to rend and tear. Her claws slid through the tough Gleschution skin like butter and the woman screamed as Fania ripped long, deep trails through her flesh. Her alpha roared for blood, her fangs painful under the need. As the slave squirmed, screaming for mercy, Fania’s head lowered and her fangs sank deep into the woman’s surprisingly tender throat. Hot, bitter blood spilled out and ran down her throat, warming her as nothing had done since the Gleschutions had captured her and her family and brought them to the prison at Wallow, a gift for their spoiled high master. Hard hands grasped her arms and yanked but Fania had her claws deep in the woman and the slave came up with her, no longer screaming. The slave hung limply from her claws, her head lolling back. There was shouting all around her but Fania ignored it, reveling in the feeling of fullness for the first time in months. As two more guards tugged on her, trying to extract her from the now dead slave, she released the woman, flinging her to the ground like an empty vessel. The guards shook her, dragging her back as the second female fell over her friend, howling. “Release her!” Fania slid a slow glance upward, to the angry visage of the Gleschution high master, Amduark. Her smile was slow and satisfied, coated in blood. “Your majesty, the woman is dangerous. She belongs in the prisons.” Fania scanned her gaze toward the Commander of the Guards. Owat was a massive, vicious Gleschution who’d taken pleasure beating the male prisoners and raping the females. Few had escaped his filthy attentions. Fania had been lucky, mainly because the high master wanted her for himself. When she looked at him, Owat blinked rapidly, his hand going to the long, curved sword on his hip. “Idiots!” Amduark roared. “She is injured. What did I tell you about manhandling my future wife?” The guards shared a look. Finally, Owat bowed low. “Our apologies, majesty.” Amduark kicked the dead slave, causing her sobbing friend to scurry away like a bug from flame. “She did the slave a favor by killing her quickly. I’d have torn strips from her hide until she had no voice left to scream and then boiled her.” Sated for the moment, Fania’s alpha receded, leaving behind a bone deep cold and soreness. Despite her residual

92 pain, she stuck her chin out and tightened her muscles against the need to shiver. “I’d like to be returned to the prisons. My people need me.” Amduark’s dark gaze slipped over her, filling with heat. Fania was suddenly aware that the light robes she’d been wearing were transparent from their soaking. “You must stop thinking of them as your people, my love. Your people are in this room. They fill the passageways and courtyards of Wallow Castle. You are no longer Sanguinoss.” He said the beloved name of her planet with a sneer, as if the very word created a foul taste in his mouth. She shook her head, risking his infamous wrath. She’d rather be dead than be his high mistress. “You are mistaken, High Master Amduark. I am Sangui, Alpha of the Blood. I will always be thus. You can shackle me to you with a circle of gold around my finger and upon my head, but I will still be Sangui. Nothing will change that.” To her vast surprise, Amduark merely smiled. “We shall see. Very soon.” He turned to Owat. “Ring her.” The chill she’d willed away in his presence shook her to her very core as he turned and walked away. Owat held out a leathery hand and one of Amduark’s humanoid servants placed a gold, metal ring into it. She stood perfectly still as the big Gleschution soldier snapped the ring around her throat, feeling its taint as a burning sensation below her skin. A moment later, she was blessedly alone in the bedchamber, with only a guard outside the door. Alone with her thoughts and fears. Only one thing would make the cruel and barbarous high master of Gleschute smile in that way. sneakpeek-cover-mavimViolence and death. And it was clear she wouldn’t be the one to suffer his wrath. Her pulse soared, fear spiked. Suddenly she knew what he had in mind. And she couldn’t allow it. She paced the confines of her room, wringing her hands as she struggled to find a solution. She was strong. With the new blood coursing through her veins she was stronger still. But the high master believed she would not attempt a coup as long as he had what was left of her family locked within his prisons. They made her weak because she would do anything to keep them safe. That was when she knew he had reason to be smug. She would become his mistress. Because to do anything less would risk a long and painful death for her remaining family. And that was something she simply could not allow.

Meet the editorial team Editor: Kaz Augustin is an ex-Brisbanite (Australia) who loves space opera, SFR and all things geeky. She currently lives in Malaysia, where she loves the shopping for tech gadgets, but hates the heat! Her website is at www.KSAugustin.com and she and her husband also run Sandal Press. If you’re a Twitter fan, you can find her at @SandalPress . Send all feedback about this magazine to editor {@} scifiromancequarterly {.} org

Fiction Editor: Diane Dooley is the Fiction Editor for Science-Fiction Romance Quarterly. Born in the Channel Islands, raised in Scotland and now resident in the USA, she is an author, an editor, a voracious reader, an unrepentant troublemaker, and a geek of intergalactic proportions. You can follow her on her blog or on Twitter. Live long and prosper! Releases Editor: Heather Massey is a lifelong fan of science fiction romance. She searches for sci-fi romance adventures aboard her blog, The Galaxy Express. She’s also an author. Her stories will entertain you with fantastical settings, larger-than-life characters, timeless romance, and rollicking action. When Heather’s not reading or writing, she’s watching cult films and enjoying the company of her husband and daughter. To learn more about her work, visit HeatherMassey.com .

This issue's contributors Charlee Allden is a long time fan of SciFi, love, adventure, and happily-ever-afters. She grew up in Florida where a huge fallen oak tree in the swampy woods near her home served as her very own Star Ship Enterprise. Luckily the alligators were almost never a problem on her space ship as the flight deck was several feet above the muddy ground. She did lose a few tennis shoes on away missions, though. By day she’s a technical writer; in her spare time she pursues a variety of geek endeavors, including blogging. She is the founder of the Smart Girls Love SciFi and Paranormal Romance blog. When the moon is full, she writes fiction. She’s a veteran of Dragon*Con, a member of Romance Writers of America©, and has a tendency to take on more projects than any sane woman would. Sanity is over rated, anyway. You can find out more about Charlee at her website, catch up with her musings at her blog and she’s also active on Twitter. Toni Adams is here to voice her opinions. Toni Adams resides in Los Angeles. Among the normal plane of reality, she has B.S. in Molecular, Cellular Developmental Biology and works as a veterinary technician. She has dealt with Felis catus, canus lupis familiaris, reptilian creatures, various avians, lagamorphs, rodentians, chelonians, and testudines. In her loving care are four felis catus, one canus lupis familiaris, and one pogona vitticeps. In summary, she really loves animals.

95 When she is able to shed off the shroud of a Responsible Adult, she partakes in so many guilty pleasures that the guilt has long worn off. To name them all would make your brain explode from the sheer power. Just know, that it involves a blue police box, ponies with absurd markings on their rumps, a norse alien god, a rock band from the nineties, gaming (trading cards, board games, consoles), random international romantic dramas, and lots of crafting. The guiltiest pleasure of all has been decades of reading romance novels. From corset ripping heroines to gun toting she-devils, she continues to devour story after story. Romance and science fiction is a blend that can either intoxicate her to dangerous levels of excitement or entice boiling frustration. Bring on the excessive transfer of heat and get some hydrogen elements shakin'! The Book Pushers are six book-loving girls from around the world who share a love of all things romance. From small town contemporaries, to sweeping historicals, to gritty paranormal, to the futuristic science fi, they read it all. They are known for their fun, conversational style joint reviews, and can be found lurking on their website, on Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, and Booklikes.

Marlene Harris is currently the Technical Services Manager at The Seattle Public Library. She's also one of the co-editors of SPL's Romantic Wednesdays feature on Shelf Talk, which gives her a chance to expose her love of romance novels. In addition, she's also a reviewer for Library Journal's Xpress Reviews, and the author of their annual Librarian's Best Ebook Romance feature. Because she can't resist talking about the books she loves, and occasionally the ones she hates, she has her own book blog at Reading Reality. In her professional persona, before coming to Seattle she previously managed Technical and Collection Services Departments at libraries in locations from Gainesville Florida to Anchorage Alaska to the Chicago Public Library. Jo Jones is a retired pilot who, after retiring, had an RV and traveled 6 months out of the year. After traveling seven years she left on a trip and realized that she was ready to spend more time at home so she sold the RV. She isn't giving up travel; she just takes the trips that did not fit with RVing. When at home, she gardens, reads, plays bridge, hikes, visits with friends, and volunteers. Jo is an unabashed big cat lover and shares her home with TC, her shelter cat. Both of them live in the Ozarks in Northwest Arkansas which, they unanimously agree, is one of the best places in the country to live. Reviewer RK Shiraishi R.K. is a long time science fiction fan, as well as a fan of all things fantasy and paranormal. She spends her spare time deep in the world of classic SF television, movies, and even radio plays. Her alter ego is as fantasy writer Echo Ishii. Her first novella, MR RUMPEL AND MR GRIMM is available from Less Than Three Press. You can follow her on Facebook (RK Shiraishi), Twitter and Pinterest (mrsbookmark). Reviewer Psyche Skinner is a working scientist with a taste for imaginative fiction. She is constantly seeking novels that combine hard speculative science with well-rounded characters--although she also appreciates a good space opera.

96 Reviewer Rachel Cotterill grew up hiding from the real world in a succession of imaginary lands, and has no particular wish to return to Earth. She likes fast-paced plots, greyscale morality, and characters who remain believable when they find themselves in situations that are anything but. She’s always searching for her next favourite author, and is half of the feminist SF book blog Strange Charm, which exists to showcase the best in speculative fiction by female authors. When she isn't reading, Rachel is professionally and perpetually indecisive, splitting her time somewhat haphazardly between writing, computer science, linguistics, recipe development, and travel. Rachel's third novel, Watersmeet, is a romantic and optimistic fantasy published earlier this year. You can find her on Twitter at @rachelcotterill. Reviewer SFF Dragon is an avid reader, some might say bookworm, who lives in England and grew up on a steady diet of home cooking and proverbs. When her head wasn't stuck in a book, she was out being active or volunteering to do charity work. As an adult, animals, any type of sport involving cars, swimming and lots of reading are her main past-times. She also likes watching war, western, spy, sci-fi/fantasy, Christmas stories of any kind and romance films and series, and thinks the best ones include all of these categories. She loves science fiction, paranormal romance, urban fantasy and any feel-good Christmas story which she reads all year round to maintain her perspective on what's important in life and loves nothing more than a happy ending. She has individual Degrees in Computer Programming and Business Studies, a Masters in HR Management and shares her home with her partner, loads of gadgets, and thousands of books and DVDs. When not reading, which isn't often, she can be found doing anything from learning a new language to designing and making her own clothes and jewellery, as well as gardening for a little light relief. You can find her on Goodreads and Facebook. Ian Sales has recently been working on a quartet of novellas, the Apollo Quartet. The first, Adrift on the Sea of Rains, was published in 2012. It won the BSFA Award for that year and was shortlisted for the Sidewise Award for Alternate History. The second book, The Eye With Which The Universe Beholds Itself, was published in early 2013, and the third book, Then Will The Great Ocean Wash Deep Above, in late 2013. The final novella, All That Outer Space Allows, will appear in 2014. He is represented by the John Jarrold Literary Agency, can be found online at www.IanSales.com and he also tweets. Our Opinion contributor, Cora Buhlert, was born and bred in North Germany, where she still lives today – after time spent in London, Singapore, Rotterdam and Mississippi. Cora holds an MA degree in English from the University of Bremen and is currently working towards her PhD. Cora has been writing, since she was a teenager, and has published stories, articles and poetry in various international magazines. She is the author of the Shattered Empire science fiction series, the Helen Shepherd Mysteries, the Silencer series of pulp style thrillers as well as several standalones in various genres. When Cora is not writing, she works as a translator and teacher. Visit her on the web at www.corabuhlert.com or follow her on Twitter under @CoraBuhlert. The short story “Old School Sensibilities” was written by Christina Tang-Bernas. Christina has had her stories published in Women Arts Quarterly Journal, 3Elements Review, and Dark Matter Journal, to name a few. Asked to describe herself, she says: "I like to write. I love interesting characters and intriguing ideas, witty dialogue and fascinating situations. I hope you enjoy my work!" Her website is at www.ctbideas.com. The cover for Issue 7 was designed by KS Augustin.

Advertise with us! Here at Sci-Fi Romance Quarterly, our mission is to empower and entertain with sci-fi romance stories and original artwork. To accomplish this goal, we rely on the sustenance of your advertising contributions. Advertising with Sci-Fi Romance Quarterly is a smart way to grow your readership because our readers are passionate about SFR. If you’d like to support this magazine and also reach a highly motivated audience of power readers, then please consider advertising with us. Deadlines for Issue 8: Quarter-page ads – 15-September 2015 Two-chapter excerpts – 01-September 2015

Quarter-page ads For a quarter-page ad in SFRQ, we require an image that is: 250px by 300px Full colour Minimum 140dpi One URL (for click-through) The ad will appear on the website and in the EPUB, Mobi, PDF and Flipbook formats of the magazine. Price: $16 if you supply the magazine-ready ad / $26 if we create the ad for you. Questions? Email Promotions ~at~ SciFiRomanceQuarterly ~dot~ org

Two-chapter excerpts *Please read this section carefully and do NOT send any funds unless specifically requested by us. Any funds prematurely sent to us will NOT be refunded (they will be regarded as donations!), so make sure you understand what’s in this section first.* In order to satisfy readers’ curiosity about SFR releases, Sci-Fi Romance Quarterly is currently soliciting excerpts for a new section we call “SFR Excerpts.” Excerpts will appear on the website and in the EPUB, Mobi, PDF and Flipbook formats of the magazine. “SFR Excerpts” submission guidelines > Only excerpts from current releases will be considered (i.e., last quarter, this quarter, and the following quarter) > The excerpt must be suitable for readers ages 13 and up. Excerpts with sex scenes will be automatically rejected > Create a new document. On the first page, include the book’s title, your name, release date, publisher, available formats, price, click-through URL and your contact email address

98 > Place the first two chapters of your book after the title page > Save your document in DOC/DOCX/ODT format > Send the document to Promotions ~at~ SciFiRomanceQuarterly dot org, with “EXCERPT – [book title] – [author name]” in the Subject line > The Editorial Team will evaluate your submission. Any excerpt with sub-par cover art, formatting errors, copious typos and/or grammar mistakes will be declined. > All rejections are final. Rejected excerpts are ineligible for future consideration >

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If your excerpt is chosen and you wish to have it included in the magazine: > Cost is $30 per excerpt. An author may advertise up to two (2) approved excerpts in a given calendar year. > Bonus discount: If you purchase a quarter-page ad for the same issue where the excerpt is running, the price will be $41 for excerpt plus a DIY ad, or $51 if we create the ad for you. (Regular price $46 / $56) Disclosure As you may know, Heather Massey, Diane Dooley and KS Augustin (i.e. the Editorial Team) are SFR authors themselves. With this in mind, and to preclude any perceived conflict of interest, the Editorial Team will be restricted from using this opportunity for a full year of issues; that is, from Issues 5 to 8, inclusive. Questions? Email Promotions ~at~ SciFiRomanceQuarterly ~dot~ org. We are constantly thinking of opportunities we can offer to help promote SFR, so watch this space! And thank you for your support! For short story and artwork submissions, please refer to our website at www.SciFiRomanceQuarterly.org

Issue 8 will be out on 30 September 2015